Take The World
by ButterflyBird
Summary: He's an asshole, insatiable, persistent, and dangerous. She's shy, kind, understanding and patient. He doesn't want to like her, but she keeps reeling him in. Jake can't control himself around her, and she's slowly losing control of everything else in her life. Jake can't stop himself from wanting her, and Sherry isn't sure that she can ignore the high school bad boy any longer.
1. Introductions

**Warning: This story is not for the faint of heart. Know that this is a gritty story, subjects will be breached that might be uncomfortable for certain readers.**

**Take the World**

**Chapter I**

Sherry Birkin sat before her father's bed with defeat. William Birkin's face looked ashen, and his once soft blonde hair was now brittle, and waning on his head, where his eyes had been light there was now darkness, where hill full lips had once been stretched with infinite smiles there was only grimness. Even when he tried to smile it looked like it pained him.

Today she would leave him in the care of the home-health- aid nurse he had adamantly requested. Her father refused to let her drop out of high school for even his sake. She protested stubbornly at first, but realized that this was only stressing him further, so she relented.

But now they had moved a new town, and she didn't know what to do here. When she asked him why this strange town named he had simply told her that it would give him peace to know that in case of his death his friend would be nearby to handle things so that she wouldn't have to.

"Dad, I have to go to school, okay? I'll be back by four in the afternoon…"

William opened his eyelids carefully; she resisted the tears in her eyes and bit her lip. "You'll have fun Sherry; this is a nice town… I promise you'll like it."

She couldn't be so sure and hid the cynic in her as best as she could. Gently she reached to his hair and gently stroked his head… she cringed inwardly when a few strands came out tangled in her fingers. But at the same time his hair was so thin that it couldn't really be considered 'tangled' as much as 'weaved.' "I'll see you later on, okay daddy?" Her weak voice became weaker as she stood, he smiled at her.

"Bye sweetheart."

She kissed his cheek gently, and escaped the room, the nurse was waiting in the living room with a small smile.

Jill Valentine was a sweet woman who Sherry thought was far too young and good looking to be in this profession. The woman had blonde colored hair and strange blue eyes, they were wide… always so knowing, and she always had a sweet smile planted on her mouth.

"Off to school?" She asked Sherry as the blonde girl grabbed her book-bag and sighed heavily.

"Yes… I'm not sure about this. I don't think it will be as easy as dad claims it will be but… I have to do what I have to do." She shrugged nonchalantly and then held her arms out to her sides, "how do I look?"

Jill analyzed the outfit with a critical eye. She took in the plain blue button-down shirt Sherry wore, and then the black skinny jeans. She nodded and then looked up to Sherry's eyes, "you look appropriate. But it looks like you're wearing a uniform." She wrinkled her nose in distaste.

"I don't want to look like one of those girls on the first day," Sherry mumbled awkwardly and moved towards the exit of the apartment.

"You should live a little," Jill called to Sherry as the petite blonde made her exit and started down the stairs, "you're too much of a good girl!"

"There is no such thing!" Sherry called back with a small laugh as she made her way out of the apartment complex.

**…**

_Not good… not good... not good. Dear God, why me? Why is it always me? I I get that life comes with hardships to teach us lessons… but really? Does this ever stop? _

The first thing Sherry noticed when she stepped out of the cab to the high school was the fact that the high school itself was immense. The building looked more like a museum then a high school. It seemed to sign in the fall sun. The second thing that she noticed was the way most of the girls were dressed. They wore shorts too short to even be considered 'shorts', and if it wasn't that then they wore skirts too short to really be considered skirts.

"Are you going to sit here all day... or?" The faceless cab driver muttered impatiently.

"Oh! I'm sorry!" She apologized and passed him the exact cost of the ride before scrambling out of the car and approaching the high school as if she were confident and knew her way around, like if she had been here for years. The truth was that she had no idea where she was going. Al lshe had was a schedule to lead her.

Since class hadn't started yet she assumed that it would be a good idea to go to her classroom early. That way she wouldn't get lost on the way and then have to make an awkward entrance in front of a bunch of kids she did not know.

Few people noticed her as she passed, for this she was grateful. She did catch a few glances with a few boys but quickly turned her face away and sped her walk up to the entrance of the school.

The hallways were long, lined with lockers on each side. The ceiling was lined with long lights that made the glossy floors look like runways. She noticed some girls strutting passed her as if it truly were a runway too.

Another thing Sherry found herself happy about was how easy it was to find her classroom. It was on the first floor, all the way to the left. Room 104. When she found it shepeered into the room from the pane at the window.

Sherry was already picking out a seat, all the way to the back and right in the middle, _if I sit at the corners the teacher might catch sight of me better. _

In no time at all – which meant entirely too soon- the first bell rung. She walked into the classroom quietly and took a seat. Outside she could hear the sounds of students as they made their way through the halls.

A man walked into the room suddenly, she could only assume that he was the teacher. He had a black tie on and a plain button down blue shirt with black pants. Embarrassment washed through her. Her outfit looked a lot like his… she suddenly felt uncomfortable knowing that she had indeed dressed as if she were in uniform. He looked up to her with a confused stare.

"Hello, do I have you in this class? I've never seen you before… are you the new student?" He asked. He had a nice set of glasses on his face. She nodded shyly, too afraid that her voice might crack. She also noted that his hair was slightly blonde in color and that his eyes were green and hooded over a tense brow bone. "Sherry Birkin?" He asked, setting his briefcase on the table and opening it, shuffling through a set of papers and then coming upon the one he wanted.

"Yes, that's me."

"I'm Mr. Kennedy. It's a pleasure to meet you," he smiled at her, "why were you already in the class when I came in?"

"I-I just wanted to be the first one in here…"

"Avoid all the stares?" He guessed with a dashing grin. She blushed and nodded. "Don't worry Sherry, everything will be fine. The kids may seem intimidating but they aren't all bad. In fact there's one girl in this class that I can see you getting along with… you're actually right in the seat that she usually sits in." _One girl only?_

"Oh.. Oh, I'll move then." She stood to move but as she did she heard a chuckling voice from the doorway. She looked to it, as did Mr. Kennedy, and she saw a brunette standing there with a sly smile on her face.

"It's no big deal, you can sit there. I don't want it anyway. The girl who sits in front of you has a huge head and I can't ever see the board." The girl rolled her eyes and strode forward. The first thing that Sherry noticed was how she dressed, the girl wore strangely tight cargo pants and a black shirt with her backpack slung over her right shoulder. She had amazingly stunning hazel eyes, perfectly almond shaped and a pony tail.

"Thank you, are you sure you won't mind?" Sherry mumbled as the girl settled into the seat beside her.

"It's totally fine, that girl's head is fuckin' ridiculous-

"Language!" Mr. Kennedy warned the girl beside sherry with a serious stare.

"Sorry, Mr. Kennedy," the girl laughed, her eyes sparkled_, she sure doesn't look sorry_, Sherry thought and settled into the seat as the girl finished her original statement, "it's like the size of a watermelon. It's huge... well you'll see." She said forebodingly and then turned to Sherry with a gentle smile, "what's your name?"

"Sherry, Birkin."

"How interesting," the girl mused, "Sherry Birkin, S.B. I'm Sheva Alomar, S.A." She suddenly turned to Mr. Kennedy who had gone to writing a few notes on the board. "Did you plan this Mr. Kennedy? Or are we _meant_ to be friends?"

Sherry grinned at that.

When the bell rang the kids finally filtered in. They instantly took in the new girl and Sherry avoided their stares by burrowing her face into her notebook and pretending to be very concentrated on the notes on the board about World War II. _World Wars, I know all about that. It's this very room! _Sherry thought as she noticed girls muttering and looking in her direction. She hoped Mr. Kennedy would spare her the whole 'introduce yourself' tradition. Luckily when he turned around he seemed to notice her shy demeanor and didn't bother even mentioning that there was a new student.

It was then that a girl walked into the classroom. Sherry noticed her instantly because she was chewing like a cow and had too much make up on. Sure she looked gorgeous, but it was still clownish.

"Oh, here she comes," Sheva muttered quietly. The girl looked to Sheva with a roll of her eyes and then settled in front of Sherry.

The rest of the class Sherry found herself squirming as she tried to look at the board around the girl's head.

Sheva snickered beside her the entire class.

**…**

When that class ended Sheva grinned at Sherry and asked her if she needed help finding her next room. Sherry replied that she did not and simply thanked her, Sheva nodded and wished her luck with the rest of her day.

When Sherry went to her next class, which was art, she met an eccentric teacher, Ms. Wong. The woman spoke with a sultry tone that made Sherry uncomfortable, the woman oozed everything Sherry didn't, and she couldn't help but squirm under the woman's beautiful dark eyes. That class went by easily; she simply sketched while the other students minded their own business and casually spoke to her about things she had missed during the year. But none of these things would really matter in her grade she knew.

The next class was Math, which she hated, there she met a boring teacher whose name she never learned because he never bothered to introduce himself. He had a scrawny voice and the students mercilessly whispered about his appearance. Only when she looked at her schedule did she learn his name was Mr. Irving.

By fourth period she thought she was going to faint from anxiety, but luckily this was a lunch.

She took her time walking to the cafeteria, she considered going to eat outside but then realized that she had no knowledge of how to get around here, so playing it safe she decided she'd go into the lunchroom and read as she ate.

When she entered what she hereafter called Hell, she looked instantly for where there was an empty table. The cafeteria itself was modest in size. Round tables sat all around leaving one very direct isle towards where people could buy food, she'd brought her own lunch so she searched for a table quietly. She found one all the way to the back of the large cafeteria and squirmed past people uncomfortably.

She could feel their stares, it was awfully obvious too. Some of the girls didn't even bother to whisper their confusion over who she was. And while she knew it shouldn't bother her (she was new after all), it was the fact that they were so blatant about talking about her that bothered her.

_Almost there… _she thought as she approached the circular blue lunch table. It was just in the distance, _almost there, _she could almost feel the imaginary sweat on her brow as she hurried to it. She could almost hear the slow motion victory music as she was just in reach of it.

She reached it with a huff and a grin playing at her lips, she looked foolish that she quickly hid it and set her bag down and took out her sandwich and her book. She sighed with relief, and then she heard her.

"Can I sit here? I mean, I figure its better than sitting on the hot cement outside." Sheva's voice made Sherry's head snap up with surprise.

"Yes, of course." She quickly moved her bag off the table as Sheva slid onto a chair and then looked at Sherry expectantly. "What?"

"Well, what do you think so far? Does the school meet your expectations?" She looked at Sherry's sandwich and raised perfect eyebrow.

"I think it's nice… no one has been mean to me. So that's a plus right?"

Sheva threw her head back and cackled. Sherry stiffened, confused, "don't let them fool you. We have our own Class _A_ for _Asshole's_ in this school."

Sherry kept her eyes locked with Sheva's, afraid to look anywhere else, "you curse a lot."

"And you're a good girl." Sheva smiled and then grew serious, "let me show you whose who here." She slid her chair next to Sherry and bluntly pointed out people where they sat.

"Don't point, that's rude…" Sherry mumbled shyly. Sheva noticed her frightened stare and let down her hand for Sherry's sake.

"Fine, look," she discreetly pointed others out with her eyes, "stay clear of these bitches," she muttered pointing out a table near the entrance of the cafeteria. Sherry noticed a student with dark hair and steely eyes looking through her notebook with disinterest and speaking to a bunch of other females. "That airheaded one you see with the tits hanging out of her shirt is Excella Gionne…" Sherry winced at the words Sheva had used for Excella Gionne's breasts, "her father is a hot shot scientist so she thinks that his intelligence is naturally passed down to her… but boy is she wrong…" Sherry smiled slightly and then Sheva pointed out another group, this time it was guys, "that right there is the Jocks table."

"Isn't that a bit cliché?"

"Things may be Cliché, but Cliché things exist because they're true. They are jocks. They think they're hot-shit too, but see the thing about them is that they _are_. People here worship the ground they walk on, the difference between them and Excella's group is that where people worship these guys – people generally hate Excella Gionne. Even Excella Gionne hates Excella Gionne, it would explain why she wore those shoes with that outfit." Sheva cackled now at her little joke and set her forehead down on her forearm which rested on the table. Trying to hide her laughter.

Sherry raised a brow and ate her sandwich patiently, waiting for Sheva to finish laughing.

"So what are you doing in this town?" Sheva asked, raising her head and wiping under her eyes. She looked towards Excella and let a snicker past her lips again.

"Well… my dad felt that it was time for a change." Sherry didn't want to delve into it. "Have you always lived here?"

"Diverting attention from yourself, smart," Sheva observed, "I have lived here all my life. You might notice a bit of an accent but that's only because of my father and mother."

"I hardly noticed," Sherry said with a raised brow.

"Really?" Sheva shrugged, "everyone here never seems to stop mentioning it. They love to make me feel like an outsider. I just make sure they understand that I'm comfortable with it." She grinned almost maliciously, Sherry looked away. "You're the good-girl archetype you know that?"

"What do you mean?"

"You sit here, quietly reading and eating. You don't curse, you don't even show any hint of anger towards anyone. I'm sure on your first day there are plenty of people to already hate."

"I don't hate anyone."

"That's what I mean… I mean don't get me wrong, it suits you, you look the part you might as well be it. But it's just amazing to me that you are so kind. I wouldn't be on my first day. No way, I'd be very guarded."

Sherry said nothing to that and then looked to the entrance of the noisy cafeteria as three guys walked in. "Who are those guys?" She asked Sheva, wondering if she really knew everything about everyone as she seemed to let off.

Sheva looked up to the entrance. "Ah… here we are… These are the three idiots of the school. The one all the way to the left, that's Billy Coen." He stood out like a sore thumb, he had tattoos running down the length of his left arm and his hair was long and shoulder length, pulled back and away from his serious face. Dark brown eyebrows hooded his intense dark gaze, and she noticed that he was also the shortest out of the trio. But the most dangerous looking.

"He looks…"

"Scary. And he's dumb as hell," Sheva rolled her eyes. "The one in the middle, that's Jake Muller. He's probably the nastiest of the three of them. He has a bad habit of ending up in prison cells for the night and then coming to school reeking of last night's whore." Sherry winced at her choice of words. "As you can see, he's disgusting." Sherry observed the way he grinned at Excella Gionne who had almost too casually bumped into him. He stared at her backside as she walked away without shame, he grinned shamelessly when the guy on his right punched him in the shoulder, shaking his head in disgust.

Jake Muller had a scary face compared to the others. He wasn't ridiculously good looking… he was just… intimidating. He had a very short crew cut sort of hairstyle. His hair was a strange colored hair, almost red, but not quite there yet. And his skin was a strange fair tone. He had a broad chest. He was not quite as tall as Billy, but he was clearly at least six feet tall. He wore a tight black long sleeved shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He had black cargo pants and thick boots. His eyes were narrow and sharp like the rest of his features. His mouth was grim when he stopped grinning like a dirty fool at Excella Gionne.

"And that one to the right is the love of my life." Sherry blinked rapidly at Sheva's statement, "that's Chris Redfield. He's the biggest fool, but I love him." Chris Redfield was muscular and tall. He had a serious countenance about him, and he wore plain jeans and a snug black t-shirt. He had a bit of stubble on his face and deep brown eyes. His jaw was thicker than the rest of his friends, he looked to even be bigger the Billy, Sherry realized with a widening stare.

Then she realized that they were heading in her direction.

Sherry looked to Sheva and found her grinning like a fool in Chris' direction. The closer they came the more food Sherry found she was stuffing into her mouth. She then realized, with horror what she was doing and did her best to swallow it all quickly.

The trio stopped in front of Sheva and Sherry. Jake Muller was saying something to Billy Coen and Chris Redfield stepped around the table and kissed Sheva on the lips, Sherry's eyes widened when he saw him deepen what looked to be a chaste kiss. Sheva laughed and pushed him away gently, he smirked down at her, "I missed you."

"I missed you," She smiled softly.

He grinned foolishly down at her. Sherry found herself smiling at the plain adoration in his eyes. "Whose this? New Girl?" Chris guessed and grinned in Sherry's direction. She suddenly felt very tiny in front of the giant.

"Her name is _Sherry_, don't be rude." Sheva said seriously. Chris extended his hand and took Sherry's carefully in his own, shaking it firmly. His hand swallowed hers.

"Nice to meet you." Sherry murmured shyly, ducking her gaze a bit.

"Nice to meet you too," he sounded sincere enough. "I'm Chris, but I'm sure Sheva was ranting your ear off about all of my wonderful qualities."

"Haha!' Sheva laughed sarcastically, "not quite."

He grinned at her and then looked to Jake Muller and Billy Coen. "These two handsome devils-" Billy laughed at Chris' phrasing, "are Jake Muller and Billy Coen."

Sherry extended her hand to Billy first, he smiled at her sweetly, "Sherry." She said with the nicest grin she could possibly put on.

"Nice to meet you cutie," he flirted and suddenly kissed her hand. She reddened and pulled her hand away as Sheva made a short sound in her throat of plain revulsion.

"You're disgusting." Sheva announced, "couldn't you just shake her hand like a normal individual? God, Sherry here, some hand sanitizer." She pulled out a little bottle and handed it to Sherry who resisted taking it; she looked up to Billy's sheepish face and shook her head, not wishing to embarrass him. She'd make sure to use it later.

Jake Muller then looked at her for what she thought was the first time. She realized with a certain shiver that he had strangely crisp blue eyes. Her hand trembled as she extended it towards him. He looked at it and then looked up at her. A smirk suddenly slithered its way onto his face.

_He's laughing at me_, she realized.

Sherry pulled her hand back, had she offended him? Did he not like to be touched or something? "I'm Sherry."

"Yeah, I guessed the first two times you introduced yourself." He rolled his eyes at her as she blushed and bit the inside of her cheek. She lowered her gaze, embarrassed.

"I… Uhm.. I have to go, okay? So I'll just talk to you later?" Sherry looked to Sheva who was glaring at Jake so hard that she was certain she was going to burn a whole into his head.

"Don't leave," Sheva said, looking to her then.

"No, it's fine I have to go do a few things anyway. Honest. Do you want my number or something?" Sherry could hear the shaking in her voice.

"Yeah, that'd be great!' Sheva grinned and pulled out a touch screen phone. Sherry pulled out her old phone and flipped the top open. Jake snickered at the sight of it and Sherry ignored him to the best of her ability as Sheva told recited number and Sherry told her her own. She closed it when it was saved and then looked to Sheva with a smile.

"Thank you for everything."

"No problem, see you later maybe? I don't know what classes you have…"

"We'll see I guess. Nice meeting you Chris," Sherry smiled, "you too Billy, nice meeting you too Jake." Not really.

Jake looked at her as she stood with a raised brow and that smirk still on his face, "See you around, New Girl."

She said nothing else and escaped them all; missing the tongue lashing Sheva started dishing out on Jake Muller.

* * *

**So, what did you think? I hope you liked it haha! And to all my readers from Color me Once I am especially curious to know what you think.**

**To my new readers know that I update by review count, the more reviews, the faster my updates :) **

**You guys did read the warning so in the future don't become shocked at some of the things I write. **

**Review please! Tell me what you think of the personalities so far :) **


	2. People Like Us

**Chapter II**

When Sherry got home she went to her bedroom and clapped her hands over her face.

She couldn't cry. If she cried her father would know and she didn't wish to stress him further. That would do her no good, and more importantly that would do _him_ no good. He was supposed to be living a stress free life; any stress at all could launch him into a heart attack.

The rest of the day, after lunch, had passed rather uneventfully for which she was thankful. She'd catch glimpses of Chris Redfield here and there and whenever he saw her he'd shout her name across the hallway; everyone would stare at him, and then at her as she meekly waved back. He was quite boisterous.

Sherry sighed and started washing her hands. Her dad's health was weak and so she always took as many precautions as she could.

"Sherry?" She heard knocking at the door, Jill Valentine. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Sherry lied laughing, "I just needed to wash my hands really fast, I don't want dad catching anything." With that she heard Jill's retreating footsteps. Sherry dried her hands in the small bathroom before opening the door and stepping into the living room.

Her father had given her full freedom to design the apartment as she wanted. It was a strange apartment in its construction. There was a large bay window with a patio to the right of the arm of the red couch she had picked out. She had fallen in love with the deep burgundy and the smooth fabric. The floor was shiny and made of wood, a flat-screen hung against the wall shared with her father's bedroom. The walls were colored cream, it gave everything a modern feel.

"Hi daddy," she smiled , stepping into the bedroom and closer to his bed. He looked to her from where he lay and released a small breath and a smile.

"Hey," he shivered, "how was your day?"

"Are you cold?" She asked, looking to the windows. They were closed, she walked to the heater and placed her hand against it, it was going.

"No, I'm just, you know, sick." He laughed lightly; it was a wheezing thing that made her want to cry, "how was school?"

She stepped closer and gently got into the bed with him and rested her head lightly on his shoulder, "is this okay?"

"Yes, sweetheart."

"School was fine," she finally answered, "I think I made some friends already," she bit her lip nervously, "there is this girl named Sheva Alomar, she's strange. A bit hyper and like a spy. She knows everyone in the school."

"Mhm.." her father acknowledged.

"And then there is this other guy, her boyfriend" she clarified quickly, "his name is Chris Redfield. He's huge dad, like a big piece of muscle. He's really nice, every time he sees me in the hallway he yells out my name."

William laughed a bit at that, he knew how much she hated attention, "what about the teachers?"

"They're really nice, there's Mr. Kennedy, Ms. Wong, Mr. Irving, Mr. Rogers, Ms. Quinn, and that's pretty much it."

"So you liked your first day at school?"

Sherry nodded, "how have you been feeling?"

"I've been feeling the same…" he rasped and she sat up, staring down at him with a frown.

"Dad, tell me the truth. That's what you always say when you –

"Sherry you know that I'm dying. Why do you lie to yourself, sweetheart?" His blue eyes looked sad, "I know you don't want to admit it. But I am _dying_ Sherry; you need to accept it so that you can prepare yourself. The doctors already told you how long I have-

"Dad stop," she bit her lip and shook her head, "you're not going to last if you keep doing this to yourself."

"Sweetheart I'm not doing anything to myself. I got this apartment and gave you free reign precisely because I can't do anything for myself. I'm dying," she winced, "and that means that you're going to have to take responsibility, this apartment-

"Is that why you gave me freedom to design?" Sherry said in a tight voice with a frown at him, "so that when you leave me I will have somewhere to live and call my own?"

"Of course sweetheart," he sighed at her, "like a good-bye present," he joked morbidly.

She shook her head at him, hurt, "I can't believe you just said that." She stood from the bed and started making her way out.

"Sherry, sweetheart please…"

She closed the door to his bedroom and walked past Jill who stared at her with sad eyes. She walked past the living room without a glance, suddenly hating the sight of it and past the kitchen to the left and the bathroom door on the right until she reached her bedroom on the complete opposite side of her father's.

She slammed the door shut and fell face first into the light blue covers on her bed.

_How could he say something like that? A good-bye gift? And not only did he say it but he was joking about it like if he no longer got the seriousness of the situation_. His words hurt her, he had given up. She didn't want to believe it at first but she knew it now. He no longer planned to fight his cancer. He planned to succumb to death and leave her, all the while _laughing _about it.

Would he not miss her? Did he not understand how it hurt her to see him take their imminent and eternal separation so lightly?

She rolled over, breathing deeply and staring at her white ceiling, focused. She wouldn't cry. If there was one thing Sherry hated it was crying. And her father always knew when she was crying, he explained it as fatherly instincts. And again, she wouldn't want to stress him out.

"Sherry?" She heard Jill's voice at the door.

"Come in!" Sherry called with as much as a normal voice as she could. Jill opened the door and looked around.

The room itself was very Sherry, white and blue lay all around her. The girl was very neat, Jill had observed. Sherry had a bookshelf pressed on the wall before her bed and a small desk beside her bed which was to the right of the door. The bed itself was large, it was one of those beds Jill saw in Ikea and asked herself _who actually owns one of those?_ But Sherry did. Often she wondered if the girl struggled to get onto it, it was tall and fluffy, Sherry was small and dainty. There was the window on the other side of Sherry's bed with black shades which were almost always drawn.

And finally her eyes rested on Sherry, who stared at her expectantly.

"Are you alright?"

Sherry nodded, "everything's fine. I just.. I think I need to get some air."

"Do you want to go for a walk? I don't mind staying with your dad for a few more minutes if you need to get some air."

"No, that's not fair, it's fine I'll stay here." Sherry smiled, "Have a nice night Jill. Thank you for everything again."

"No problem," Jill smiled, "I left some chicken breasts for you in the fridge with rice, I hope you like it."

"You're too sweet, thanks."

Jill left a few seconds later in a bit of a rush; she knew that when Jill left like that it meant she had a date.

How long had it been since _Sherry_ had a date? She couldn't even remember. Of course her father had a lot to do with that.

Sherry sighed and threw herself back into the covers, closing her eyes and trying to concentrate on being calm, she was finding it harder and harder as the days went on.

**…**

"Sheva's gonna' kill me man," Chris complained as Billy and Jake stared at him like if he was an idiot, "you know she fucking hates it when I show up late because you two assholes are getting wasted and I have to pick you up!"

Jake rolled his eyes at Chris and took another swig of the whiskey in his hand. All around him 18 year olds were drunkenly falling, making out, playing or sobbing for no reason at all. While the house was small, and he couldn't' really remember the name of who was throwing the party, it served its purpose. Chris was the only one who was sober, "you need to lighten up," Jake said seriously, "you know that Sheva forgives you for anything."

"Wish I could get a girlfriend like that…" Billy moaned, closing his eyes as the room spun.

"You have no idea man, Sheva looks all calm and forgiving but she'll rip me a new one. The last time I had to drive the two of you home she kicked me out of her house before I even got through the door!"

"Overreacting," Jake murmured as a girl eye fucked him from across the room.

"No, not overacting," Chris glared, "it was our fucking two year anniversary and she had cooked me a dinner and everything."

Jake ignored him; Billy spoke up, "what do you think about that Sherry girl? She's nice. I think she was into me."

Jake rolled his eyes, "that girl reminds me of a fucking mouse."

"Yeah, she does. But that's nice, a girl who doesn't talk so much." Billy clutched his head, the room was spinning.

"Don't fuck with Sherry, she's Shev's friend. And Shev is going to kill me if the two of you start playing your sick little games with that girl." Chris glared at Billy who opened his eyes and stared at Chris with irritation.

"I'm just saying that she's cute, I think she likes me."

"You're out of your fucking mind," Chris muttered and stood from the couch as Jake sniggered madly.

"How much do you wanna' bet I can get that girl to kiss me in less than two months?" Jake threw out in his haze.

"Twenty bucks, and I'll give you thirty if you can get her to give you tongue!" Billy giggled.

"You two are disgusting." Chris hissed, "I'm leaving. Are you coming or not?"

Suddenly above the loud music they heard an all too familiar sound. Everyone froze at the same time.

"Fuck! Cops!" Jake suddenly bounded up from the couch and everyone suddenly ran in all different directions. Billy laughed, "get your fucking ass in gear! Get up! The cops are here!"

Billy giggled some more and Chris grabbed him by the arm and threw him over his shoulder. Jake stumbled behind Chris drunkenly as the sirens got louder. His feet didn't' want to cooperate with the rest of his body. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the girl who had been in the corner of the room standing against a wall looking terrified.

Chris heard the sound of furious knocking at the front door, or kicking, he couldn't tell which and looked behind him to where Jake was pulling the girl by the hand.

"Let her go man what the hell!"

"I need to get laid!" Jake drunkenly slurred and pulled the girl with him as she giggled madly and followed him, "you're not drunk are you? I don't wanna' take advantage of ya." Jake stared at her seriously as Chris' eyes bulged.

"Are you seriously having this fucking discussion right now?! I'm out!" Chris bounded out the back door and started jogging towards the fence. "Sorry Billy," he stated and threw his friend over onto the other side of the picket fence.

"Shit…" Billy groaned as he fell onto the grass. Chris jumped over and grabbed him up again and started making his way across the neighbor's lawn and towards his car.

In the house the girl was staring up at Jake with a sweet expression, her eyes were big, kind of like that New Girl, Jake observed through his haze, except this girls eyes were brown, and her hair was straight and shoulder length where the New Girl had shorter blonde hair.

"You wanna' come home with me?" He asked pulling her through the back door and stumbling horribly.

"Yeah," she slurred at him, tossing him a drunken grin as he made his way towards the fence. He could see Chris' form in the distance running like a football player with his ass on fire.

"Okay, come on, up and over!" He jumped over to the other side easily despite the alcohol in his system and watched her in her skirt as she tried. She lifted one long leg, exposing pink panties underneath the leather skirt; he let his eyes drink it in.

She collapsed onto her face.

"Alright sweetheart," he groaned and picked her up by the back of the legs and tossed her over her shoulder.

He started stumbling and running along the neighbors perfectly cut grass. He could hear the girl giggling at his hands on her ass, trying to keep her from falling. He went around to the side of the white house and peeked around the corner, he could see the cops with a bunch of his friends pressed against the hood of the car. He looked to the left and saw Chris sneakily getting into his car.

He looked back to his right and set the girl on her feet. She wobbled where she stood and he pressed her to the side of the house, "I' m real sorry about this but my dad's gonna' kill me if I get caught."

"What are you talking about?" She asked him.

He sighed heavily and pressed his lips against hers. She moaned weakly against him and tried to deepen the kiss but he pulled away, "see ya'."

"Wait, what!" She shrieked. He took off running towards Chris' car. It seemed so far but yet so close, Jake could feel his feet protesting his running.

"Stop right now!" He heard a familiar voice call out. He came to a halt and groaned; he put his hands up and fell to his knees. "God damn it, Muller this is crazy with you, I'm getting fucking tired of this shit!" The officer growled out as he jogged to the teen.

"You're tellin' me? I'm the one that has to deal with you assholes," Jake muttered. "What's up Hunk?" He laughed as Officer Hunk picked him up and discreetly tossed him into the cop cruiser. Jake fell against the leather seat with a huff, noticing that the girl was nowhere to be seen. Was she still hiding? Shit, she was going to get away with this! He grinned despite himself getting caught.

"Should I tell your father now, or later Jake?" Officer Hunk asked as he got into the car and stared at Jake through the mirror.

"Whatever, tell him now." Jake murmured as the officer pulled out his cell phone and speed dialed Albert Wesker. "Hunk, are you gonna' ever change these damn seats? Their killing me."

"That's because your ass is sore from always sitting in them." Hunk snapped back.

Jake knew he had to get it all out now before he got home and faced his father, so he laughed.

* * *

**SO! WHAT DID YOU THINK? **

**:) I hope you liked it, as you can see Albert Wesker IS in Jake's life, and you found out a little more about Ms. Sherry Birkin. :) **

**Questions: **

**1. What did you think of Sherry's interaction with her father, did you pick up on a few things about her personality? **

**2. What are you hoping will happen to Jake when he gets home to face his father? Do you like Jake's character so far? **

**Tell me what you think, I am so very eager and only reviews encourage me to write faster, so REVIEW PLEASE :) **


	3. Sandwiches

**Chapter III**

"It's not funny," Jake glared at Chris Redfield as they walked towards the lunchroom, "stop laughing."

"It's fucking hilarious man," Chris continued grinning, "Your dad is something else."

"Fucking right he is." Jake muttered, remembering.

When he had gotten home last night he was not at all surprised to find his father waiting for him on the living room couch. Instantly his stoic face turned to Jake and he stood from where he sat. Hunk who still had his hand on Jake's shoulder began speaking as Albert Wesker drew closer to his son, the sunglasses made his face perfectly unreadable.

"No one saw him; he won't go to the prescient," Hunk glared at the back of Jake Muller's head, "_this _time."

Albert Wesker stopped in front of his son. They were both the same height, it made for an intense stare down. But Jake always lost; it was hard to stare at a man with such a cold face as his father. He looked down at his shoes, gritting his teeth, "thank you for your assistance," the blonde male stated monotone at the cop, "you may find your way out."

"Rude as ever," Hunk grumbled and marched out of the house. When the door closed only then did Albert Wesker speak directly to his son.

"I see that your punishment was not enough last time."

Jake rolled his eyes and stepped back from his father, "I'm not even all that drunk, it already wore off, see?" He stared at him with anger, "It's not like you'd give a shit if I went to the prescient or not so you can cut out the caring father act now Albert, that suit don't fit. Don't you have some paper work to do?"

Wesker's mouth twisted into a small smirk, "your foolish boy. Do you really think that your imprudent comments about my job are going to hurt my conscience?" Albert Wesker stepped forward, Jake stepped back, "it is my job that pays for the clothing on your back, the roof over your head, the boots on your feet. Don't forget that next time you try to guilt my conscience." He stopped walking when Jake was pressed against the wall, staring at him defiantly. It made a strange surge of pride flare in Wesker's chest. His son wanted to fight him, his son wanted to _break_ him. His son was not a force to be reckoned with, but he always pushed his buttons, wanting to see how far Jake Muller would go. No one else dared to bother his son, that also made him strangely proud, "what? Do you want to fight with me?" Jake Muller had that look in his eyes when he wanted to throw a punch.

"Don't push me," Jake growled at his father and started to walk past the man but suddenly found himself crushed against the wall, "get the fuck off!"

"Make me," he quipped and pressed his arm against his son's throat hard enough to see him struggle, he wanted to see the day that his son would beat him, then, and only then would he know he did not have to worry about the boy handling himself.

Jake squirmed against his father, trying to break his arm away from his throat.

"I taught you better then that boy," Wesker said in a sharply disapproving tone. Jake threw out the heel of his palm, his father easily dodged it and pinned the younger man to the expensive tiles under their feet, "that was horribly predictable."

"Get the fuck off me!" Jake yelled and threw his elbow back; he felt contact with his father's face and heard the clattering of his glasses. Jake got up with a sharp, 'ha!' in his face and stared at Albert Wesker, who was looking to where his glasses landed, he flexed his jaw, "you're getting old, old man."

"And you are ridiculous," Albert Wesker walked to his glasses and picked them up, then turned to his son, "you're going to baby sit the Ashford Twins as punishment."

"That's just cruel."

Albert smirked, his reptilian orange eyes tightened the slightest bit, "you might want to go to the pharmacy after school tomorrow and get yourself a mop and some medicine, apparently they have a bad stomach flu. They've been committing all over the place."

Chris _still_ hadn't stopped laughing.

Upon entering the cafeteria Jake's eyes unwillingly traveled to the back left. He caught sight of Sheva, just taking her seat, and the New Girl beside her laughing at something Sheva had said.

"Sheva looks so hot today," Chris drooled as they stepped in their direction, Jake had to agree. She wore a purple tank top beneath a striped sweater; she had a pair of tight black jeans and a strangely pretty, but natural makeup on. She even let her hair down.

The closer they got, however, the more he looked at New Girl. Her hair was styled like the day he had first seen her, short, slightly messy, but not really. Her blue eyes were lit with laughter as Sheva continued talking, and today she had a bit of lip gloss on, _I'd like a taste to see what flavor it is, _he thought with a cocky smirk as they stopped before them.

"Chris!" Sheva grinned up at him, Chris bent low and kissed her smoothly on the mouth, once again Sheva had to be the one to pull away first before things got out of hand.

Sherry looked up at Jake and to his dismay she released a small smile, hardly there at all. And then turned her face away from him.

_What the fuck? _

"Hi, Jake," Sheva glared, "where is the other idiot?"

"He's still at home," Jake sat down on a chair and slammed his feet onto the table, Sherry frowned and quickly pulled her bag away from his muddy boots, he chuckled, "he's got a bad hangover."

"Good," Sheva smiled, "he's an idiot, even more of an idiot then you are."

"I'm getting' real sick of your shit," Jake informed her with a glare. Chris sat beside Jake and didn't get involved, Sheva liked to handle her own.

"That's fine, I'm getting sick of your shit too, or do I need to remind you that you and I are friends, despite the fact that you are always letting me down."

He rolled his eyes at her and looked to Sherry who was chewing on her sandwich tensely.

"Do you always eat the same thing?" He asked, she looked up at him, eyes all wide and innocent, _that's just sexy. _

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"You're always eating sandwiches, do you always eat that?" He wrinkled his nose.

"So because I have sandwiches for two days you think I am _always_ eating sandwiches?" Her stare became a bit annoyed but she didn't have the courage to even _sound_ mean.

He smirked and shrugged, "I'm just wonderin' if I should buy you some lunch New Girl, since it looks like all you can afford is that."

"Jake, stop being an asshole." Chris bit at him, glaring.

Sherry blushed at Chris' defense and quickly wrapped her sandwich. This guy hated her for no reason at all. She wanted to leave, but she knew that it would make everything worse, but she didn't care. Things were already so bad; he hated her for no reason at all!

"I have to go," she mumbled and stuffed the sandwich into her bag.

"Aw, Sherry stay-

"It's okay Sheva," Sherry smiled and pat her on the back, "I'll see you around. Maybe this weekend or something" _Thank God it's Friday, I won't have to deal with Muller for two days. _

Sheva sighed and nodded, "okay, see you."

Sherry nodded at Chris and completely ignored Jake and started making her way out.

"You're an asshole!" Sheva exclaimed with fierce eyes, "go and apologize to her!"

"Are you kidding me?" Jakes eyes narrowed, "I didn't do shit to her."

"You're a jackass." Sheva shook her head with defeat.

Now Jake stood angrily and started to stomp out of the lunchroom, ignoring Excella who walked past him with a nice sway of her ass.

**…**

Sherry sat outside on the steps of the school with the little sandwich on her lap. She never felt self conscious about what she ate. But suddenly she didn't want to eat this. Jake Muller made her felt like if she were some incompetent freak. All because of a sandwich!

Behind her she picked up the sound of what seemed to be boots. She picked at the sandwich quietly.

The sound of the footsteps stopped, and then picked up again louder in her direction. She didn't dare to turn around and make awkwad eye contact.

"What are you doing out here?" Jake Muller asked in an annoyed fashion, noticing how she stiffened and then mechanically turned her head, she looked at him as he stood a few feet behind her and then turned around, ignoring him.

_That's how you want to play? Fine. _Jake strode to her side and then plopped beside her on the cement. He heard her make a big annoyed sigh and grinned at her, she was going to lose this if she thought ignoring him was possible, _no one ignores me. _

He pulled out his cigarette pack and stuck one between his lips. He didn't miss the way she shuffled to the right, away from him as discreetly as she could. He searched in his pockets for his lighter and lit the stick in his mouth, inhaling and exhaling without removing it from between his lips.

"What? You don't like smoking?" He turned his eyes to her, she glared at the thing in his mouth like she wanted to light it up again but this time have it explode in his face.

"No, I don't smoke."

"Why? Afraid you'll get sick or somethin'?" He released smoke again, this time removing the cigarette and squinting through the billowing smoke. She nodded once, "have you ever tried it?"

"No." She stated firmly, "it's gross."

He shrugged, "so you can insult my smoking but I can't say anything about your sandwich habit?"

She didn't say anything to that and looked out to the road where cars were passing. She ate quietly.

"Hey!"

Jake and Sherry turned to the sound of another person, Jake's eyes narrowed at the approach of Steve Burnside. He hated him more than anyone else. He hated the way he styled his copper hair, he hated his small physique, he hated how he wore army styled pants every day like some sort of fashion statement.

"Fucking Burnside," Jake muttered as Steve ran up to Sherry. Jake looked to her and narrowed his eyes at her smile.

"Steve, hey, what's up?"

"Nothing, you left this in class earlier," he handed her a pencil. Jake snorted, drawing a glare from Burnside.

"Oh, thanks," Sherry mumbled awkwardly, taking the pencil that she was certain was not hers and stuffing it into her bag. Jake didn't miss the creepy stare Burnside gave Sherry's ass as she bent over.

"You came over here to give her a pencil?" Jake asked.

"Yeah, I didn't want to forget," Burnside stated.

"You're so full of shit," he laughed.

"Jake!" Sherry admonished. Her eyes were wide and almost disbelieving, "thank you Steve, for the pencil." She turned her eyes up to him.

"No problem Sherry, I wanted to ask you something else too. There's a party this weekend at my place, do you want to come?"

"Steve I'm sorry but I really do have things to do, thank you so much for the invite, if I get time I'll definitely stop by but I doubt I'll be able to."

_Ha! Take that fucker, _Jake laughed mentally, trying to keep the smile from lips.

"I understand I'll see you around then, bye" Steve smiled and walked away.

She turned back to her sandwich and looked to Jake Muller curiously. He was staring off into the distance like if he were lost in thought, "you don't like Steve Burnside?" She guessed.

"Hell no, that kid is annoying. Look like a fuckin' twink wannabe."

Sherry tilted her head with confusion, "what's a twink?"

_Oh shit! _Jake choked on the smoke, laughing hysterically as she blushed profusely and looked down to her sandwich with indignation. _How much of a good girl is she? She doesn't know what a twink is? Damn I haven't even heard her curse? Fuck, I haven't laughed so hard in such a long time, _"you really don't know what a twink is?"

She shook her head, still not meeting his gaze.

"A twink," _I_ _can't believe I'm explaining this_ "is a term for a young looking gay man… usually hairless too."

She blinked rapidly, "Oh… well, he doesn't look like that."

"Yeah he does, and besides he's just bad news."

Her eyes flared, "why do you say that?"

"That kid might as well be nicknamed Pablo Escobar," Jake shrugged and dug his cigarette into the cement beside him, "everyone knows what goes down at his parties, drugs galore." Her eyes widened, "I may like my cigarettes when I'm stressed, but drugs…"

"That's another story," Sherry finished for him, looking down at her sandwich. She then looked back to Muller who was staring at her, "so you're stressed? Is that why you're smoking?"

"Kind of."

"What happened? That's if you want to talk about it." She wanted to know a bit about him, he was so closed off it seemed.

Jake smirked, "I got grounded. I have to baby sit these two brats, the Ashford Twins. Those two are a pain in the ass."

"That sucks," she shrugged, "just put on some cartoons and give them something to eat, get some apples, bananas, and strawberries and make a smoothie. That'll keep them entertained for a while." She stood from where she sat and grabbed her bag. Jake looked to her with confusion.

"Where are you going?"

"To class, I like to get in early."

"What should I make them to eat?" He called as she started walking away.

"A sandwich! They're nice and cheap, I'm sure someone as rich as you can afford it, right?!" She threw back with a low chuckle. Jake frowned at her little jab. She was feistier then he thought.

_Apples, bananas, and strawberries… _he remembered quickly and stood from where he sat. Suddenly wishing he had gotten to talk to the New Girl more.

The rest of the day was spent with thoughts of her.

* * *

**Review!**


	4. Pizza & Bikes

**Chapter IV**

"Dad are you done?" Sherry asked through the bathroom door.

"Yeah honey, I'm good!" He weakly coughed back. Sherry pushed the door open and carefully approached the bathtub where her father sat naked and shy. She knew how much he hated this, but as the cancer progressed he found himself getting weaker and weaker to the point where bathing was almost impossible.

"What scent?" She asked and rolled up her sleeves, "mint, or mango?"

"Mango," he whispered back with embarrassment at the fact that his daughter had to bathe him. She wanted to roll her eyes at him but kept it inside. Her father was always very difficult when it came to bathing.

The entire process was easy enough, and while he kept his eyes stubbornly to the bathtub and rarely spoke Sherry couldn't help but be thankful that he wasn't putting up as much of a fight as he usually did.

"Okay, I'm done," she told him as she poured water down his back and carefully over his arms, "do you need me to help you get out?"

"No!" He exclaimed angrily. She jumped back in shock, "I can do it myself, here pass me the towel." William sharply ordered. She sighed, knowing that it was just his frustration with his helplessness. She passed him the towel which he took weakly.

"I'll be right outside the door, okay daddy?"

"Mhm!" Was all he responded as she stepped out. When she shut the door she leaned against it and sighed heavily, closing her eyes and praying for patience.

Jill had off this weekend. That meant that all of Jill's daily duties were hers. And while her father hated the idea of Sherry having to bathe him she knew that it had to be done. She tried her best to be as quick as possible and to keep her face expressionless so that he might not read into it and then demand that Jill work the weekends too. But it was hard to be expressionless when the more she bathed him the more she could see how emaciated he was getting.

This entire weekend she had been preoccupied with thoughts of medicine. Her father had started to become lazy about them, claiming that he didn't really need them anymore. That soon the end was coming. William Birkin would get into gloomy moods sometimes; there was no explanation as to why. And while Sherry wanted to beg him to stop talking like that she just let him continue because she knew that he would whether she asked him to or not.

"Are you ready?" She called. She heard a _humph_ and pushed the door open.

Sherry helped her dad into his wheelchair and wheeled him to his bedroom. She sat him in his bed and grabbed his underwear, sweats and a light grey T-shirt.

As she dressed him, his ragged breathing picked up.

"You okay dad?" She slipped the shirt over his head gently, averting her gaze from the few locks of hair that fell along the way.

"I'm sorry sweetheart," he muttered, she looked up to his blue eyes with confusion, "I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. I know you're only trying to help."

She smiled reassuringly and stroked his wrinkly ashy cheek, "it's okay dad I know how hard things like that are for you. Don't apologize okay?" He made her want to cry. She easily held them back, _practice makes perfect. _

"I know you know, but that doesn't give me any right…" he wheezed slightly.

"Daddy lay back, don't work yourself up alright?" Sherry helped him settle back into the bed, noticing how he could hardly lift his legs. He was getting worse and worse.

"I'm so useless," he muttered with irritation as Sherry lifted his legs to the mattress with little difficulty, "I should just…" he didn't finish for Sherry's sake. But she knew what he was going to say. _I should just die, _he was thinking.

That entire Sunday Sherry spent it with her dad watching television and laughing at the comedy shows, her father had a strange interest in The Office so she made sure to record all future episodes for him.

**...**

When Monday came Sherry found that Sheva was not in class. As she was walking through the halls she caught sight of Chris walking with Billy Coen. Instantly she ran up to them.

"Chris!" Sherry breathed almost with relief; Billy stared at her with a grin, "Hello Billy."

"Hey short stuff! What's up!" Chris interrupted Billy before he could get a greeting out. Sherry smiled sheepishly in his direction.

"Nothing much, how was your weekend?"

"It was great, caught up with some homework. Met up with Shev." He shrugged, "yours?"

"It was alright, I wanted to ask you have you seen Sheva? She wasn't in class today, I figured that she was going to be late but she never showed up."

"Oh," he frowned, "yeah Sheva's got a fever, she thinks I passed it to her or something," Chris rolled his dark eyes, "women."

"Oh, well that's too bad. Tell her I want her to feel better soon, I miss her." Sherry smiled.

"You want to join us for lunch?" Chris asked, ignoring a boy who grumbled about them standing in the middle of the hall, "We're going to go get some pizza. It'd suck for you to be sitting all alone, you know?"

"Oh," she blinked with surprise, Billy's grin widened, "yeah, that'd be awesome." _Where's Jake? _She found herself asking, and then mentally slapped herself, _I should be happy that he doesn't seem to be here either!_

Sherry followed Chris and Billy out of the school and into Chris' red Dodge Charger. She slid into the back while Billy went for the passenger seat and Chris started the car.

"So Sherry," Billy started, "I heard that you got invited to a party this weekend, why didn't you go?"

"Oh, Jake told you about that?"

"What?" Chris looked confused.

"Well, this kid Steve Burnside invited me to a party… I told him I was busy."

Chris cursed sharply under his breath and stopped at a red light, "that kid's name should be changed to Steve Burn_out_. I mean all the kid does is smoke weed and get drunk. And they think Jake is bad," he rolled his eyes.

Billy spoke up then, "Jake really hates him."

"Why?" She asked curiously, leaning forward a bit as the car started moving again.

"Jake thinks Steve wants to basically be him. Dress like him; take his identity type of stuff. Pretty egotistic if you ask me," Billy rolled his eyes, "Jake's meeting us there right?"

Chris nodded; Sherry's heart began pounding with dread and a strange surge of excitement.

When they got to the small pizzeria they passed by a black motorcycle, Billy whistled when he saw it and shook his head, she was confused as to why.

Sure enough when they got inside Jake was sitting there with one leg resting on the seat of the booth. He raised his crisp blue eyes to them and then zeroed in on her, she withdrew her gaze, trying to hide behind Chris' large body as discreetly as possible.

"Well, well, well, look what the bear and the criminal dragged in," Jake stated when they approached the table. Chris slid in beside Jake, and Billy slid in front of him while Sherry sat next to Billy so that she was in front of Chris. Jake's eyes narrowed, "shouldn't you be with Sheva?" he asked her.

"She's out sick," she informed him quietly, looking to Chris as if for affirmation.

"Hey! Roy!" Chris hollered loudly, drawing a few stares from other students, "four slices! On me!" He grinned broadly. Sherry thanked him quietly while Billy and Jake nodded in his direction silently.

"So, how was babysitting?" Chris asked Jake.

"Horrible, little brats vomited everywhere," then his eyes found Sherry, "I gave them the smoothie… they loved it."

She smiled and didn't respond.

"So Sherry," Billy interrupted and placed his arm behind the seat so that it was behind her head, she shifted uncomfortably but smiled at him nonetheless, "tell us about yourself, what are your mom and dad's names?"

She resisted the temptation to stiffen, "Annette and William."

"She clearly doesn't want to talk about her past," Jake stated firmly and glared at Billy, "so drop it."

Chris raised a brow at Sherry, he hadn't noticed anything unusual that said she didn't want to talk about it.

It was then that Roy called Chris' name, Chris stood and fetched the pizza while Billy glared at Jake and Jake ignored him by looking at his hands and flexing his fingers as if they pained him. Chris came back and handed everyone their slice.

"This fucking kid…," Jake grumbled angrily and looked past Sherry's head. It was then that Steve Burnside stopped beside their table.

She looked up in mild surprise while Chris glared openly and Jake watched intensely, "hey."

"Hey!" He replied enthusiastically drawing a groan from Jake, Steve rolled his eyes, "you didn't show at my party."

"No," she replied regretfully, looking at Jake quickly and not missing the satisfied smirk on his face when Steve's face drooped, "I had things to take care of, I'm really sorry."

"Well… I invited you so I just assumed that-

"Yeah but I was busy," she stated softly, hoping he'd understand, "I am really sorry."

"Yeah, I guess," he mumbled and brushed a hand through his red hair, "listen uhm, I really wanted to talk to you privately-

"Beat it, loser," Billy chuckled, Sherry's eyes widened, _are they always so confrontational around here? _"Sherry is on a date with _us_ right now," He laughed darkly, leaning towards Sherry, she stiffened and Chris laughed with his mouth full as Steve glared at Billy.

"Sherry can I talk to you privately?"

"Yeah, Steve, it's not a problem," she stated a bit sternly, and stood from the table, annoyed at them all for being so rude. Billy made a small whine and Chris shook his head, she avoided looking at Jake entirely and followed Steve out of the small pizzeria. When they stood outside she breathed in the fresh scent of the spring wind and tried to calm herself.

"So," he started, running his hand through his hair again, she looked into the store and saw Chris, Jake, and Billy all staring, "I wanted to know if you'd… I don't know - go on a date with me or something like that?"

She blushed and looked down at her feet, _why me? _"I'm really sorry, but I can't… I just-

"It's just one date," he pleaded softly, she looked up at him, "please?"

"It's just that my dad doesn't really like the whole dating thing so I can't-

His hand darted out and he took her hand tightly, her eyes widened in shock, "come on, "he grinned down at her, she was stupefied by the charming hold he suddenly had on her, "you know you want to. It won't be anything too crazy; I'd just really like to get to know you." She tried to jerk her hand back subtly but he didn't seem to notice, "I'll even meet your dad if-

"No, no, that's not a good idea, he's really mean," she lied, "he's really not the-

"Sherry-

The door suddenly opened behind them and then the unmistakable voice of Jake Muller was right behind her, "get your hands off of her, can't you tell that she's not fucking interested?" She looked behind her with pleading eyes, Jake wasn't looking at her, his eyes were burning at Steve.

"How'd you know what we were talking about?" Steve glared, dropping Sherry's hand.

"You do the same thing with every new girl, that's how." Jake terrified her, his eyes looked dangerously collected. As if he didn't need to lose his temper to efficiently knock Steve out.

"It's okay, I explained to Steve that I can't go on a date with him," she tried to relieve the tension poorly, ignoring how the proximity between Steve and Jake was getting closer and closer with her in between, "let's just go back inside now, okay?"

"Yeah, let's do that," Jake agreed with a steely stare at Steve. Sherry sighed with relief as Jake turned his back and walked back into the pizzeria, she turned and stared at Steve who was glaring at Jake Muller with hard eyes.

"I'm really sorry-

"Don't worry about it," he muttered and turned his back, Sherry sighed and quickly turned into the pizzeria.

…

"That guys a real piece of work," Chris muttered with frustration as Jake watched Sherry from his peripheral vision. She seemed a bit embarrassed by what had taken place. She had explained very quietly of Steve's desires to take her out, he had to repress a laugh, as if Steve could ever get a girlfriend, "I should have gone out there and kicked his ass." Chris continued.

"It's really not a big deal, you don't have to fight over stupid stuff like that," Sherry stated, "it's immature."

"What's immature is him grabbing you like a little pussy," Billy disagreed, tossing his arm over the back of the bench and behind her head, Jake narrowed his eyes at him, _what fucking game was he trying to pull? Can't he see how she doesn't like that? _The discomfort was evident as Sherry leaned forward so that his arm might not touch her head.

"He didn't grab me," Sherry defended much to Jake's annoyance, "he.. held me."

"He shouldn't be touching you, he's got no right," Chris stated, "it's a good thing Jake went out there instead of me. I would have slammed him through the window of this place," Sherry winced; Jake looked at Chris with humor.

"And ruin the place?"

Chris thought for a moment, "maybe on the floor."

"That's better," Billy agreed, Sherry just shook her head in mild annoyance.

Jake also noticed the way Billy stared down at her. With a primal stare like if he was seeing right through her clothes. And while Jake had to admit that he had let his gaze wander the few times he saw her in the hallway, he had never gawked like Billy.

The first thing he had noticed about her body was how outrageously small she was. It was a strange thing because he himself was so tall, it made him want to hold her just to see how she'd fit against him. She barely reached his collar bone.

And then his eyes filtered down to her waist, it was tiny, he was certain that his hand would cover the length of her waist from behind, and then her breasts. They were small, firm looking, he tried not to stare too much. She had a nice set of thighs on her too. Overall she was a fine piece indeed.

_But there is something wrong about the way Billy stares at her all the time, _Jake thought with annoyance as Billy stared at her breast and Sherry remained oblivious, _she's too… nice? There is something just fucked up about it. I don't like it. It's like I'm watching something perverted going down, and he doesn't have the fucking decency to look away. God I want to fuck him up. _

"Jake, time to go," Chris clapped him on the shoulder, knocking him out of his thoughts. He nodded, noticing how Sherry kept shuffling away from Billy. He was so irritating.

When they got outside Sherry started following Chris and Billy towards the car. She turned only when she noticed Jake was walking towards the black motorcycle, "is that yours?" Her curious voice made him smirk the slightest bit, there was just something about the way she said things.

"Isn't that obvious?" He sarcastically replied, throwing his leg over the bike and strapping his gloves on more tightly.

The petite girl moved closer to him, ignoring Billy who was calling her name loudly, Jake couldn't help the sly smile that spread over his face as she attentively approached.

"I don't bite," _unless you want me to._

_"_I guess I never pegged you for the biker guy type, I don't know. I guess it never occurred to me-

"Sherry!" Billy called again.

"Do you want a ride to the school?" Jake asked, annoyed with Billy, "I'm good, I won't get you killed."

"You don't mind?"

"We're going to the same place, why not?" He shrugged and kicked the bike into gear. Sherry smiled and nodded eagerly, "alright, get on."

"Ah, there's a problem," she muttered with embarrassment. Billy had started making his way over Jake noticed. "I don't think I'll be able to get my leg over the bike."

He grinned and stood from the motorcycle. She stared at him with confusion as he walked closer to her and suddenly grabbed her under the arms and lifted her.

"Jake!" She squeaked in his strong grip and then found herself straddling the bike. He smirked at her dazed expression and mounted in front of her.

"Jake what the hell are you doing?" Billy called with a furious expression. Sherry trembled as the bike roared beneath her.

"I'm giving Sherry a ride back, you're too annoying to share an entire car ride with," Jake informed him. Sherry's eyes widened and Billy balled his fist angrily. Jake gave a short sound in the back of his throat, like a laugh and a snort, "hold on to me," he instructed the girl behind him.

Hesitantly her arms came around his waist, she shuddered and nervously touched her face into his hard back.

"You're going to have to hold on tighter then that New Girl," he rolled his eyes, she was barely touching him. She tightened her grip more. He grinned at Billy who shook his head in disbelief, and then they took off.

* * *

**Hey guys! So I wanted to thank you so much for the reality check about asking for reviews, at least those of you who ****_kindly_**** advised me to write for myself. FF has gotten me into this bad habit where while I love to write it's almost made me insecure about my writing so I need 'reviews' to make me feel like it's not complete shit. So I realize with what a lot of you said about the fact that while I may not get a ton of reviews that it does not mean that the story is bad - that I have to keep that in mind when I write stories. SO THANK YOU FOR THAT. **

**As you can see I am continuing the story because I really have the story plotted out and I think that so many of you will truly enjoy it, I hope that you keep reading :) I think you'll like where this goes. **


	5. Terrible Tuesdays

**Chapter V**

"Sherry!" Mr. Kennedy's voice knocked her out of her stupor, she blinked and shifted to the side to see past the girl who sat in front of her, she stared at him with confusion, "I asked you a question, were you dozing off?"

She rubbed her eyes and nodded, embarrassed as all the students stared at her and Sheva frowned in her direction, "what was the question?" She mumbled, ignoring the giggles that sounded throughout the classroom.

"Forget it," Mr. Kennedy smiled compassionately and asked someone else.

When the class was over Sheva was instantly at her side as Sherry gathered her things, "did you get any sleep last night?"

"A little, I was studying," Sherry lied easily, blinking the soreness away.

The truth was that she was up with her father, patting him on the back gently as he coughed violently over the toilet. She had gotten no sleep and could only watch, helpless, as he would doze into sleep and then wake with thunderous coughing and tears in his eyes.

"I'll see you in lunch." Sherry mumbled dismissively and stole towards her next class.

The classes before lunch passed in a blur, one big slow motion blur.

In art she could hardly keep her head up and by the time that lunch period came she was stumbling through the hallways blindly. She could only imagine what gym would be like later in the day… that would be torture.

She moved into the cafeteria with her eyes down, not really focused on much except keeping her feet from making her pitch forward in their weak state. It was for this reason that she bumped violently into someone and stumbled backwards in shock.

"You fucking idiot!" Excella Gionne screeched, looking down at her shirt, there was a small water stain on the hem and her lunch was on the ground. Everyone turned and stared at them, "look what you did! Are you going to stare or are you actually going to apologize?"

"I'm so, so, so, sorry!" Sherry whispered fervently, suddenly very awake, "it's just water it will dry in a few minutes-

"You still weren't watching where you were going. Ugh! You fucking idiot!" She brushed past Sherry, checking her on the shoulder so hard that the blonde petite stumbled a few feet back. Her shoulder instantly began to throb and she noticed that people were chuckling at her embarrassment. Before tears could have the chance to spill she blinked them back and walked towards the back of the table, no she wouldn't leave because of something like that.

Sheva, Chris, Billy, and Jake were all sitting there. Sheva had her normal seat in front of Chris. Chris sat beside Jake, and beside Jake sat Billy. Sherry's usual seat beside Sheva left her sitting in front of the space between Jake and Billy.

They were all staring at her seriously as she put her backpack down with a bit of force. It made the table tremble slightly. Jake raised a brow and Billy stared, surprised that she was even doing that. Sheva was instantly worried and Chris was staring with shock at what had transpired with Excella.

"Sherry, are you okay?" Sheva whispered quietly, Sherry nodded and pulled out a sandwich quietly, "do you want to talk?" Sherry shook her head no and kept her eyes lowered on the sandwich in front of her. She could feel people laughing at her, and try as she might she found herself sweating with embarrassment and exhaustion, and pressure.

"So," Chris started, "I'm thinking this weekend we should all go out somewhere, maybe to the beach? Or a pool? What do you guys think?"

"My pool's always open," Billy raised his hand, "I think that'd be easier anyway. Maybe we can make it like a big party… invite students over."

"That sounds good," Jake shrugged; Sherry's eyes lifted then, "I think I can probably make it."

"I'll be there," Sheva nodded.

"You know I'm there," Chris grinned.

Then they all looked at Sherry, she swallowed quietly, "I'll do my best."

"Oh come on," Billy grinned "you know you want to."

"I do," she agreed, "but I'll probably be busy studying…"

"Sherry," Sheva rolled her eyes, "it's okay to have fun once in a while. You really shouldn't be so hard on yourself all the time, you need to unwind. Come with us," she grinned beautifully, her eyes shined, "we'll dance, we'll even be home before 1:20 AM." Sherry smiled slightly at her, "What do you say? You know you need some time to just kick back and relax."

"I really don't know, but I'll do my best to make it," Sherry promised softly.

"So," Chris smiled, "spring break is almost coming, what are we all doing?" Jake snorted, "what?"

"I'll probably be grounded for some stupid shit."

"Then don't do anything to get yourself grounded," Chris rolled his eyes, "I'm thinking we all pick one place and we have one huge sleepover."

"You sound like such a fucking girl," Jake informed him.

"I'm just saying!" Chris defend, and then flipped his hand effeminately and blinked slowly, pursing his lips and changing his voice into a high pitched sound, Sherry covered her mouth to not laugh and spit food all over the table, "let's just go _cray_."

"Oh my God," Jake frowned with disgust, "Did you snort cocaine or something? What the fuck is wrong with you today?"

Chris' voice returned to normal and he let out a boisterous laugh that made Sherry jump a little. Sheva answered Jake, "everything."

"I'm serious though," Chris said with his normal deep and uniquely unsmooth voice; his voice had a strange gravelly quality to it, _like a rusting pipe,_ Sherry thought, "let's just stay at someone's place, watch movies, that type of shit."

"I like it," Billy agreed.

"Sounds good," Sheva smiled, Chris tossed her a dashing grin across the table, "Sherry, naturally you're invited-

"What the fuck?" Jake interrupted looking past Sherry with a suspicious look.

"Here!" Excella's voice sounded behind Sherry, she turned at the same moment that Excella hand stretched out.

Suddenly something cold crashed on her face.

She gasped and stood up abruptly. Water dripped from her hair and she could hear the gasps all around, no one was laughing. She rubbed her face quickly, trying to clear her vision. What had just happened! Excella had just thrown water at her? Over the minor incident a few minutes ago?!

"You bitch!" Sheva screeched and jumped at her but Chris already had his arms around her, pulling her back as she struggled to free herself from his huge arms.

"Don't worry Sherry," Excella smiled at her as the blonde shivered wildly, staring in shock still, she felt like a knife was twisted into her intestines, Sheva was still cursing and Excella was grinning, "'it'll dry in a few minutes.'"

Without waiting Sherry grabbed her backpack and left her soggy sandwich. She could hear Billy yelling at Excella and students stared at her with pity, no humor in their eyes as she quickly walked towards the doors to get out.

_Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry! _She yelled mentally as people stared at her in the hallways, soaking.

"Sherry!" She heard Mr. Kennedy, she supposed he had seen her walking but she didn't stop, "Sherry what happened!" He was coming after her. She felt his hand on her own and she quickly pulled it away, she didn't look back but she didn't hear him following.

They were _all_ staring…

Dozens of eyeballs, some with confusion at what had transpired that made her look like that, some understanding that someone had probably thrown it at her, some pitying, some lightly amused.

She continued making her way out, imagining what was going on in the cafeteria. She didn't really want to know, but she hoped Excella would get reprimanded for what she did. But then again, the girl seemed to be one of those popular kids that owns the student body, so maybe that wouldn't be good after all.

She could see the door to the exit in sight, she ignored the teachers who were calling her name, asking her where she was going, they were trying to get past the students who had built a wall as they watched the petite blonde make her hasty exit.

Sherry was going home; but that didn't mean she wanted to be in the presence of anyone, she just wanted to be _alone_. She brushed her wet hair out of her face and stepped out into the cool air. Her breath was coming short and the sun caught all the little beads of water on her cheek, angrily she brushed them away.

"Hey!" Jake's voice sounded behind her, she ignored it and jogged down the first flight of steps that would get her to the sidewalk, "hey, hey, hey!" He jogged until he blocked her path. She pressed her lips firmly together, suddenly wanting to collapse and looked up at him seriously.

"Yes?"

"Where are you going?"

"Home, I'm going _home_ Jake," she stated with a voice that was so much stronger than she felt. His eyes seemed conflicted suddenly, "is there something you needed?"

"That was rough," he muttered out, looking at her with an almost bored gaze, but she could tell he was trying to gauze her emotions on a scale from Embarrassed to Enraged, "she's a bitch… don't give me that look its true."

She licked her lips, "I need to go home, I'll see you tomorrow-

"Sherry!" Billy's voice sounded from behind her, she sighed quietly and closed her eyes, praying mentally for patience, Jake's eyes narrowed into slits and he looked behind her, she turned and watched Billy approaching with a worried gaze, "I'm so sorry about that," he stated and suddenly pulled her into a hug. She stiffened awkwardly and he released her without noticing, "are you okay?"

"Does she _look_ okay?" Jake asked sarcastically.

Billy threw a glare at him and then lowered his eyes to her, "do you want a ride home? I can drive you."

She shook her head with a shaky smile, "I'd rather walk." His eyes widened, hurt, "no not like that!" she sighed heavily and ran a hand through her hair, "I meant I just… I need time alone, Billy; it's been a rough day. I'm sorry that the other thing came out wrong," she wanted to breakdown into tears. She could feel them rising but she looked away, once again choking them back, "I really just need time alone."

"Hey, it's no problem," he smiled and kissed her forehead. She shivered and pulled away discreetly.

"I'll see you guys later," she whispered and quickly moved away from them both, not sparing another glance at them for fear that she might breakdown.

**…**

Jake watched her move away with a building anger.

Anger at her for being so damn nice when she should have slapped Excella, angry at himself for not understanding his sudden need to want her to defend herself, angry at Excella for being a bitch, annoyed with Chris for not letting Sheva rip her apart, and angry at Billy for being so fucking clueless.

"What the hell?" Billy asked when Sherry was out of hearing range, Jake turned and stared at him with annoyance, "you always get this sarcastic ass tone whenever I'm talking to her."

"Because you sound like a fucking idiot. 'Are you okay?' Well look at her she's soaking wet and hauled ass out of the lunch room, do you think she's 'okay'?" His eyes rolled, "and I always talk to you the same way."

When he had seen Billy press his dirty mouth to Sherry's forehead he had felt a weird discomfort. It wasn't anger, but it was irrational nonetheless.

"It's nice to ask," Bily defended himself.

"It's stupid to ask," Jake disagreed and walked past Billy with a smirk and his hands in the pockets of his cargo pants, "by the way!" He called, glancing back at Billy who was watching Sherry's retreating figure as she disappeared around a corner, "you shouldn't kiss her like that, makes you look more desperate then you already are."

**…**

"Sherry?" Jill asked as the blonde made her way through the door. The first thing that caught her sight was the wet shirt and the wet hair, "what happened?"

"Nothing, nothing happened," Sherry whispered without looking at her and moved towards her bedroom. She shut the door and quickly stripped out of her clothing. It stuck to her as it went, her chest shook and her face twisted up but she held her breath quickly.

_Do not cry._

Sherry changed into her black sweats and then into a grey shirt. She towel dried her hair and then moved to the living room; Jill was on the couch, watching Sherry with a worried gaze as Sherry flopped onto the red sofa.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Sherry shook her head silently and closed her eyes, resting her head on her arm and closing her eyes.

She didn't know why but she was thinking of Jake, of Jake coming out after her.

He always seemed to be the coldest to her, so sarcastic and dismissive… but he had come out after her. Even first then _Billy_! Jake had also noticed Excella before Billy or Chris and they had all been sitting on the same side. _I guess he's observant… _she thought.

She didn't know how but butterflies started blossoming in her stomach at the thought of how he had come out, how he had persisted even after she ignored him. There was something kind about that, something she really appreciated. She'd have to thank him tomorrow, but she really didn't know what she would say, would she say, '_thanks for coming after me but not really asking how I was doing, I really appreciated it_.'

Yet Billy had actually been kind enough to ask her how she was doing, yet she felt indifferent to it. Not happy - because it should have been obvious to him how it was that she felt at that moment, but not annoyed either, because she knew he meant no harm.

But Jake's reaction caused her to smile now as she unconsciously drifted to sleep. His sarcastic 'does she look okay?' statement made her chuckle out loud. She didn't know it but Jill raised a brow at the girl who was sitting beside her with her eyes shut and a smile tugging at her lips.

That afternoon Sherry fell asleep with thoughts of the smart-mouthed boy with the cursing habit.

* * *

**Aw... cute aw, or sad aw? I don't know, that's up to you to decide :) **

**What did you think of all of that? A bit of anger? A bit of pity? A bit of humor? **

**Tell me what you think! Your reviews always make me so happy! :)**


	6. Questions

Chapter VI

"That New Girl," someone whispered to Jake Muller's left, "I heard yesterday that she ran out of the lunchroom all wet, apparently that bitch, Excella, threw a cup of water at her for bumping into her."

A girl answered her, "I saw what happened, the New Girl deserved it," Jake rolled his eyes, "she purposely bumped into Excella, everyone saw it. And she hardly looked sorry about it; she really looked like she didn't care."

"Do you think she'll come into school today? I hope not, I mean… that's just so embarrassing."

"I don't know," the other girl answered with a hushed tone as the teacher kept writing on the board, "I haven't seen her. But I'm sure she's here, that New Girl looks like the type that doesn't miss a day-

"That 'new girl'" Jake interrupted quietly, "is named Sherry. And I'm tryin' to pay attention, so can you shut the fuck up?" The girls stared at him wide eyed, flustered and shocked.

"Is there a problem Mr. Muller?" The teacher turned around and stared at him with annoyance, "why are you talking while I'm giving a lesson?" he asked.

"Sorry," Jake stated with a roll of his eyes and a huff, "but it's hard to learn when these two are talking the entire time."

"That's not true!" One of the girls cried, the teacher glared at them fiercely, not believing them.

"If you two interrupt my classroom one more time there will be severe consequences."

The girls didn't say anything else about Sherry the rest of the class.

Jake found himself growing impatient as the classes droned on and on, he wanted to go to lunch already, and while usually he wanted to go to lunch not even to be with his friends, if not for the break it provided him, he now found himself interested in talking to Sherry. He wanted to know how she was doing, but found himself apprehensive about asking.

_How do I even go about asking that? _He wondered as he stood in gym class with an annoyed gaze and stalking around the court of the gym, he wasn't participating today, _do I just ask, how are you? That's so Billy, _he sneered mentally.

He had to admit however that he was very curious about the girl. All he knew was that she was in his lunch period, she's too nice, shy, and everyday he was getting more annoyed at Billy and Steve's attitudes towards her.

_It doesn't hurt, or help, that she's cute, _he mused quietly. He appreciated the rounded features of her body, being Jake he couldn't help but to notice her firm looking breasts, or the curves of her ass, the firm look of her thighs, _she's got killer eyes too, sexy lips, gorgeous face._

Jake sighed heavily, this was horribly frustrating.

Soon he found himself on his way to lunch, but that was an understatement, he was _rushing_ to lunch.

He even forgot to wait for Chris, but he had already been inside of the lunchroom so he didn't bother to turn back.

As he approached his eyes roamed to the back of the lunchroom instantly. And there she sat with a bright smile on her face. He smirked despite himself and with steps that were a little too hurried he moved over to her and Sheva.

…

Sherry looked up and smiled as Jake approached despite all their previous tensions, "hey Jake," she greeted him, taking in the tight shirt he wore and trying to not let her eyes wander, _he looks really good in that… I like that shirt on him, the pants are nice too. _They were baggy but tucked into his thick and dirty boots.

"Hi," he replied shortly with a smirk, she blushed and looked to Sheva who raised a brow and greeted Jake quietly.

"Where's Chris?" Sheva asked.

"Ah, yeah," Jake coughed awkwardly, "I kind of forgot about him." Sheva rolled her eyes and pulled her phone out, informing Chris that Jake had already joined them, and then quickly texting out that she suspected it was because of Sherry, Jake and Sherry didn't take any notice of the suspicious look in her hazel eyes.

"So, what's up?" He asked them both, noticing that Sherry didn't have a sandwich before her today, he frowned, "where's your sandwich?"

She blinked, "uh, I haven't taken it out of my bag." She smirked and tilted her head to the side, "do you miss my sandwich Jake?"

_Fuck, that doesn't sound right, _he narrowed his gaze, "I was just wondering. You usually have those sandwiches in front of you all the time, they might as well be part of your outfit." As soon as the words escaped him he felt like an idiot.

She stared at him, wide eyed for a few moments. And then burst into a fit of giggles that made him shift with surprise, Sheva grinned as Sherry continued to laugh with a hand over her stomach and one covering her mouth, "imagine that? Oh man, I wish I had started the school year here. I would have come in as a sandwich, you know?" She laughed again, "Everyone would look at me like I'm such a freak."

"It'd be better if we all came as different pieces of the sandwich," Jake mused quietly, Sheva stared in surprise, "Sheva you could be the lettuce, I'd be the cheese, Billy could be the ham, Sherry you could be… you could be the bread."

"What about me?" Chris' voice came to the table, he frowned stopping in front of them all, "I don't want to be fucking cucumbers, I hate cucumbers."

"Chris!" Sheva grinned at his appearance, he walked over kissed her, Sheva pulled away as he started deepening the kiss and finally he sat, Billy waved at them all and sat beside Jake.

"Chris, you could be the tomato," Jake said, knowing that Chris also hated tomatoes.

"Oh fuck you man," Chris frowned, shaking his head, "you could be the fucking bologna, no one likes bologna."

"I like bologna," Sheva raised her hand.

Chris shook his head, disappointed, "it's not even… the spelling is fucking dumb! It's pronounced Ba-Lo-Knee but spelled like if it's said, Ba-log-na!"

Jake and Sheva quickly explained for Sherry, "he's just mad because he was saying it wrong all these years." Sheva started, Chris grumbled to himself.

"It wasn't until him and Sheva went out one night to get a sandwich that she explained to him the way it's actually said. He still holds a grudge," Jake's eyes lit up with humor, Sherry lowered her gaze shyly, "don't tell anyone else though. It's a secret."

"So Sherry," Billy started, she raised her eyes to him, "you feeling better? Since… yesterday?"

"Jesus Billy," Chris grumbled, Billy didn't hear him, he just stared at Sherry's expression with interest.

"Well honestly, I don't care much," she looked to Jake, finding that he was easier to stare at, he was looking at her rather intensely, keeping her gaze locked, _he's really good looking in a strange way, _ Sherry thought quickly in the middle of the sentence, "I just went home, changed, and took a nap. I spoke about it with my dad, he wanted me to go and get any classes I have with her changed. So today before I went to class I changed one of my classes."

"Oh which one?" Chris asked.

"I swapped Italian with Gym, she was in my gym class."

"What period do you have Gym now?" Billy asked with a hopeful gaze.

"Third," she smiled.

Jake raised a brow, _fuck yeah, _ "I'll be seeing you there then."

"What?" Her eyes turned sharply in his direction, "what do you mean? Do you have that class too?"

"Is that a problem?" he frowned at her, displeased with her quick reaction.

"No," she blinked, and then smiled, "that's great actually. I'll know someone."

Billy got a dark look on his face, "that's just great huh?" Her expression became confused, as did everyone else's. Suddenly he stood from the table and grabbed his books, cursing under his breath, and then started walking away from the table. Sheva blinked in shock, Chris gaped with a mouth full of water, and Jake let out a low whistle.

"I'll be right back," Sherry mumbled and quickly moved after Billy who was just reaching the exit doors. People stared at her as she went after him but she was certain its not because they really knew what was going on.

When she entered the hallway she spotted him walking towards the exit.

"Billy!" She called and chased after him, in no time at all she reached him and quickly got in his path, he wasn't looking at her, "Billy what's wrong? Did… did I do something to annoy you?"

"Jake is always an asshole to you," he explained, still not looking at her, "I offered you a ride home the other day and you completely through it back in my face."

"I apologized for that," she was becoming frustrated and ran a hand through her hair, he noticed and softened his expression, "I didn't mean to make it sound like I didn't want to be anywhere near you. I'm sorry if that's how it came out that really wasn't my intention. And Jake and I are… well I don't know if we're friends but even if we were the worst of enemies I wouldn't sit there and say something like 'ugh I don't want to be in there with you' just because a few days ago he was being rude. That would be mean of me, and I'm not that person."

Billy ran a hand over his face, "I guess I overreacted."

She laughed lightly, "yeah a little."

…

"Should I go see what's takin' them so long?" Jake asked with mild annoyance at the fact that Sherry had gone after him, _that mother fucker – he knew exactly what he was doing._

"Yeah, you want me to come with you?" Chris asked. Jake shrugged, not wanting to make things appear weird.

"No, Chris and I actually have to talk about something." Sheva interrupted.

Chris got a wild look in his eye, "what do you mean?"

"What! No, Chris, relax," she laughed and rubbed his hand, he frowned deeply, "Christopher Redfield, I'm not breaking up with you."

"Oh, okay. I was going to ask what his name was and then go fuck him up."

"You think I'd leave you for another person?" Sheva asked with a raised brow.

Chris laughed out loud, Jake frowned, "Jesus Christ, you laugh like a fucking monster keep it down," he stood from the table and walked away.

Chris looked to Sheva with a grin, "I know you wouldn't Shev, because I'd fucking rip his arms off before he got the chance to touch you."

"So sweet and romantic," she rolled her eyes and pecked him on the lips, "but seriously though. Jake and Sherry, do you think something might be going on between them?" Chris looked to Jake's retreating form; he was by the exit doors of the lunchroom now. He thought back to the bet, he couldn't say anything to Sheva, she'd kill them all.

"I don't think so Shev, I think they're just becoming friends."

"Yeah but he's been giving her weird looks and actually talking to her, Jake doesn't talk!" She thought for a moment, "he… _annoys_."

"It's nothing… he is probably just worried about her because of what happened yesterday, that doesn't mean that he's crushing on her or anything, remember how protective Jake was of you when I met you and started –

"that was different," she defended Jake adamantly, "you were practically stalking me, remember?"

Chris frowned shamelessly, "well that fucking weird guy who was a senior was watching your ass all day. It was bugging me and I didn't want him stalking you or something so I followed you to make sure that he wasn't looking at you."

"And then I turned around," she reminded him, "and found _you_ staring at my ass in the middle of Stop & Shop."

"You didn't mind," he smirked, she ducked her gaze shyly, "in fact that was the first time you kissed me," Chris scooted his chair over to her and started whispering in her ear, running his thumb over her small knuckles, "if I remember right, you turned around, saw me staring at your ass in the middle of the supermarket and then you grabbed my hand. I was innocent in the whole thing," he chuckled as she shifted with embarrassment and bit her lip at a warm stirring in her stomach, "and then you pulled me to the canned vegetables isle because no one fucking likes those things and then you pushed me against the canned stuff and … you kissed me"

She turned to stare at him; he was smiling darkly at her.

"You know exactly what you're doing to me," her voice came out low and suggestive.

"Of course I do Shev," he kissed her neck discreetly, she shivered and he pulled away, "that's why tonight you're coming over and I'll finish what I started."

"Fuck," she cursed and nodded, this was one of the best things about Chris being 18 and living on his own, they could do whatever they wanted in his apartment.

…

Jake stalked out of the lunchroom with his mind set, if he found Billy alone he was going to rip him a new one. He was tired of this shit and was going to stop it before it got too far.

Quickly he turned the corner he had seen Billy head to and stilled. Billy had Sherry locked in a tight hug, she was smiling as he set her back down to her feet. Now the annoyance built into aggravation. Billy was really testing his patience, Jake was testing _his own_ patience. He just couldn't figure out why it bothered him so much.

"Jake!" Sherry smiled, catching sight of him, _she's so fucking pretty, _"we were just heading back!"

"Awesome," he nodded seriously, "come on, Sheva and Chris are waiting," Sherry and Billy had started making their way up to him, she grinned as she passed him.

"Are we going to finish discussing our sandwich idea?"

"Of course," he smirked at her; she laughed lightly and stepped through the double doors.

Billy made an attempt to go in second but all too quickly Jake roughly grabbed him around the collar of his shirt.

"What the fuck man!" Billy exclaimed as his books fell to the floor and his back collided with the door of a locker, Jake ignored the few students in the hallway who watched silently, no one made a move to get a teacher or a principle, they knew not to mess with him. "What the fuck Jake?" Billy asked and fisted his hands on Jakes collar, straightening his arms and trying to push him away.

"You think I'm a fucking moron?"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"You're trying my patience Coen," he warned him, "don't try to fucking embarrass me again. I'll rip that goddamn tattoo off your skin with my teeth if you try to make a fool out of me in front of anyone ever again," _especially in front of her._

__"What the fuck are you talking about?"

Jake gave him another hard shove against the locker, the sound echoed through the hallways, "do you think I don't see what you're doing? Tryin' to guilt her into being your fucking friend?"

"Fine man, whatever I'm sorry," Billy stated, still confused. _Since when did Muller care about this type of shit? _

Jake released him, allowing Billy's heels to touch the ground finally.

"What the hell is the matter with you?" Billy huffed out, "are you getting all worked up over some girl?"

Jake gave him a dark glare and moved towards the double doors. As soon as he stepped through Sherry tossed him a wide smile from the table, he smirked and approached with Billy rubbing his neck and smoothing his collar behind him.

"We decided that you should be the ketchup Jake," she informed him with a bright grin, he had never seen it on her before and from their on coined it his, _that beautiful smile is only reserved for me,_ he decided.

"Why am I ketchup?" he smirked.

"Because you're saucy," she laughed, Jake joined her with a small chuckle, but Billy smiled at her.

He asked himself Billy's question the rest of the day, _am I getting all worked up over some girl?_

* * *

**Well, WHAT IS THE ANSWER JAKE. WE CAN'T TELL YOU! :) **

**Review for a quick update :) **


	7. Numbers and Chinese Food

Chapter VI

"Dad that's it I'm going to the pharmacy," Sherry huffed as her father gagged over the toilet.

"No, no, it's too late honey," he shook his head adamantly, and then cast his blue eyes upon her, "I'll be fine-

"You're _not_ fine. I need to get you something to stop the gagging and that's exactly what I plan to do." As the words escaped her she realized the problem with this.

Who would stay here with him? She would hardly be able to forgive herself if something happened. She bit her lip anxiously and rubbed his back as he dry heaved over the toilet bowl.

_Maybe I could call Sheva? No, no… that would be too imprudent. It's three in the morning anyway… Sheva is probably sleeping. Maybe Jill? No that'd be rude… God, what do I do? _

Sherry bit her lip and spoke up again, "Dad I'm going to run to the pharmacy really fast okay? I'm just going to go and get you something to help you sleep and then I'll be right back, okay?"

"Sherry please don't-

"Dad please?" She asked gently, "if I don't do this now you're going to be like this all night. Do it for me?"

He looked to her and nodded quietly, "don't talk to strangers, okay?"

She nodded and helped him up off the floor.

When Sherry had put her father into bed and put a bucket on the side of the mattress she quickly ran into her room and changed out of her pajamas. She threw on a pair of black jeans and flats with a simple black T-shirt. It was a warm night so there was no reason to put on a sweater.

Sherry quickly took off down the stairs and towards the pharmacy. It took about twenty minutes to get there and then about twenty minutes to walk back home. When she did make it to her apartment she gave him the pills, and then collapsed in the bed beside him, exhausted.

…

"Come on," Jake muttered with annoyance, glaring at the clock behind the teachers head. It sat there, mounted before all the students as a mocking reminder of how many slow minutes they had left in the classroom.

Next period he had class with Sherry, gym. He wanted to lie to himself and say that today he was simply anxious and that that was why he wanted to get out of class so bad. But he knew that this was not the case, _I've got to cut this shit out, _he scolded himself, _I hardly know her, what the fuck am I getting all jittery for?_

Despite this, he wondered what she wore to gym class; he imagined that she wore long sweats and a baggy T-Shirt, maybe a pair of classic converse. He tried to not think about what her body must look like as she changed in the locker rooms. He stopped the thoughts, he was starting to get hard just imagining it.

Jolting him out of his thoughts the bell rang throughout the classroom with a loud shrill. "Fucking finally," Jake stated out loud, much to the humor of his classmates. He was instantly darting out of the classroom ignoring the teacher who scowled at him and tried to hand him a piece of homework paper.

He made a B-Line for the gym, cursing at himself the entire time and pushing the door to the male's locker room open. He instantly found his locker and stripped down, ignoring the hustling and bustling of other students. A few of them looked shocked to see him changing but knew to mind their own business.

He changed into a dark grey long sleeved shirt and black sweats. He took the boots off that his gym teacher had so adamantly condemned and switched to a pair of black Converse sneakers.

Jake shut the locker door roughly, ignoring the fact that one of the laces to his boots was still hanging out of the locker and closing it.

Quickly he strode into the gym, a few people were already there, trying to show off to their friends by doing pushups. He let his eyes roam as he walked casually towards the bleachers. He saw no sign of her.

_Is she absent or somethin'? _He wondered with irritation as he took a seat and watched the girl's locker room anxiously.

Girls filtered in and out, running back in to change into a pair of shorter-shorts, or to wear a thinner blouse. He watched them all, waiting for the short blonde to make it through.

That's when he saw her short yellow hair pop past the doorway. Her eyes instantly scanned the gym and when they locked on him a bright grin lit up her face, _that my grin, _he thought. She started making her way over to him and he stood, walking towards her to meet her halfway.

_Don't act like a moron, _he thought as he watched her stride meekly towards him. She was wearing a pair of snug fitting Capri pants, greenish in color, with a fitting white T-Shirt, and to his amusement she sported classic converse on her feet.

"I guessed you'd wear those," he pointed out when they were in hearing distance of one another, she looked down at her shoes, "I'm not complaining, I like them too," he pointed out his out sneakers.

"They're comfy," she agreed with a lazy smirk, "hi, Jake."

"Hey," he greeted and noticed for the first time how small she really was, "how many pushups can you do with those little arms?"

"Hey! I can do plenty!" She told him playfully, he rolled his eyes, "I can do twenty pushups I'll have you know."

"Oh really?" he chuckled and turned his back, leading them to a spot on the bleachers, "twenty is alright."

"How many can you do? Four?" She challenged.

"Try a hundred."

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously, "do you really think I'd believe something like that?"

"I'll have to show some time," he said, looking at her with a playful look that she had never seen before, "but be careful – you might drool."

"Oh please!" She laughed at his audacity.

The gym teacher blew the whistle signaling for everyone to get in their spots. Entirely too quickly Sherry ran off to her spot obediently and away from Jake. He smirked as everyone got into their lines.

"Jake Muller walk faster!" The teacher yelled loudly, her stern face clenched with rage as Jake slowly strolled to his place, whistling and odd tune that she and no one else had ever heard before. Sherry looked to where he was, slowly walking between the students that had filed up as they were supposed to. He did all this with a smirk on his face as he went, still whistling.

All the students began to laugh lightly as he shoved his hands in his pockets, taking his precious little time.

She giggled a bit as he finally stepped into his place and smiled sweetly at the teacher; the woman rolled her eyes away from him and started taking attendance. Jake looked at Sherry, who was struggling to stifle her laughter and winked. She blushed and ducked her head, missing his devilish grin.

By the time warm ups were done and the teacher ordered them to either play basketball or jog. Sherry stood where she was, shifting awkwardly from foot to foot as students made their way to do either activity. Jake found himself strolling to her as if she had called him.

"What are you gonna' do?" He asked, she looked to him with a tired gaze.

"I don't know, I'm thinking basketball? I can pretend to actually be using energy that way."

"I'll join you," he stated simply.

When they found a court and quietly took turns shooting the ball Sherry was mildly impressed with his precision. He got it in every time, and with very little difficulty. The gym teacher didn't miss this either as she watched him take shot after shot with ease.

"I think you're going to get scouted for the basketball team," Sherry laughed.

"Oh yeah? Why?" He took another shot, in again.

"The teacher is giving you looks."

"She's just crushing on me," he joked with a serious voice. Sherry laughed at this and shook her head, _he's funny, he's got dead pan humor – I'll give him that._

"So," Sherry took a shot and made it in, she ignored his raised brow, "you and Sheva and Chris have been friends for a long time?"

"Yeah, Sheva and I have known each other for a while, when I met Chris I introduced them to one another. They got together that way."

"They're really cute," Sherry smiled, "is Chris always a goofball?"

Jake laughed at that, she blinked at him, he really looked so much nicer when he looked… happy? "Chris is the most serious out of all of us."

This surprised her, "What? He doesn't look like it."

"That's because you've only seen him in front of Sheva," he dribbled and took a shot, "Chris gets happy when he's around her. And while they do have a great relationship that doesn't mean he doesn't lose his patience every once in a while."

"So when they fight it's bad?"

"No, not like that, Chris doesn't yell at her or anything. I mean when they fight it's usually Sheva telling him what he did wrong and Chris denying it until he realizes he usually is wrong. What I mean is that he's really protective of her. So when he loses his patience it's usually because of someone _around_ her, and that's one of the reasons that they fight sometimes."

"Is it like… he's overwhelming?"

"Sheva sometimes thinks so. But that's not to say that he doesn't lose his patience with her either," Jake's face took on a strange expression, like if he had said something that brought back a bad memory, "one time Sheva was hanging out with a group of her friends, a bunch of girls. And there was this guy who was interested in her. Sheva knew it but she wouldn't make it clear to him that she was taken. She'd tell him to fuck off but -

"-he still thought she was single." Sherry finished for him.

"Exactly," he took another shot and then let the ball dribble away from them both, bored with the game, he instead turned and stared down at her, "so what ended up happening was that this guy showed up at the party and started flirting with her. She told him to fuck off and he made a grab at her," her eyes widened, "he bruised her arm pretty good but she fucked his nose up.

"When she got to school the next day everything was fine, I didn't know anything had happened but when Sheva and Chris were walking home he saw the bruise on her arm. He flipped out."

"What do you mean?" Sherry whispered, afraid to hear the answer.

"He told her that he was going to beat the kid up, that he was going to kill him, burn his house down, that type of thing. Sheva started going into hysterics, pleading with him to not do anything. Usually she'd tell him to calm down," Jake stated dismissively, "but this time it was different, Chris has a pretty good temper but he lost his shit," he paused, thinking, "I remember walking up on them and she was grabbing his wrist and he was walking so fast he was pulling her with him, I ran up to him and got in his way, asking him what he was doing, and he basically told me he was going to find the guy and beat him up.

"Sheva started screaming about how he is going to do something stupid for no reason at all. And _that's_ when Chris got really angry, I've still never seen him like that again to this day," Jake shook his head and walked towards the bleachers with Sherry beside him, "he grabbed her arm and showed me the bruise, Sheva started crying. He started yelling at her."

"What was he saying?"

Jake thought, then spoke, "he said, 'why do you give a fuck about that guy? Are you in love with him or something? You haven't told him about me have you?'" Jake shook his head, Sherry blinked with shock, "needless to say Sheva slapped him so hard I thought he was going to need a dentist. She started walking away from him but he went after her and apologized for what he said. She shook him off and he kept following her all the way home until he basically was forced to leave. In school he caught her before she could go home and ask her to forgive him for suggesting that she was in love with the other guy. Sheva is a softie when it comes to Chris; she forgave him and apologized for not telling him about what had happened. She made him promise to not beat up the guy."

"Wow… so what happened afterwards?"

"_I_ beat him up," Jake smirked, "he never bothered her again, and he ended up being the one that needed the dentist by the time I was done."

Sherry shivered at his words. She wasn't sure if it was because the image in her head bothered her, or if it was because she didn't dislike it as much as she should have.

…

By the time lunch period came Sherry found herself lazily walking towards the cafeteria. She was the first in the seat, and then Sheva came. They made some small talk while they waited for the boys to come in.

"How was your night?" Sherry asked with a smile.

"Fucking fantastic," Sheva beamed at her, "Chris invited me to his apartment and he had ordered us some food but he tried to pretend that he cooked it himself."

"Only Chris would do that," Sherry laughed wildly at the idea.

"It was so obviously take out, he didn't even hide the Chinese food bags well, and he served me the food with the FORTUNE COOKIES on the plate!"

"Oh God," Sherry burst into a fit of laughter, "were the fortune paper things still in the cookie?" Sheva gave her a look that said 'yes' and she laughed harder.

"So after he served the food I let him have his little moment, I let him believe that I seriously believed that he cooked it. This is the same guy who can't boil pasta because as soon as he hears a sizzle he's convinced it's about to be a fucking explosion."

"He's so sweet," Sherry laughed.

Sheva spied the boys coming towards them so she hurried it up, "basically when we finished eating he asked me to spend the night with him."

"What about his parents?"

"He lives alone," Sheva smiled proudly, "he got a job and saved up and his parents have been out of his life for some time now. It's private so I can't go into it but he basically… to put it mildly… he almost broke the mattress."

Sherry gaped, understanding what she was saying, "that's impossible. You can't… almost break a mattress when you're… having sex!" she spluttered quietly.

"I thought that too," Sheva stated with a dazed look, "I thought that too…"

"Hey Shev," Chris grinned broadly, Sherry's eyes bulged from her head as she thought of the mattress crumpling under Sheva and Chris.

"Hey," Sheva smiled innocently and kissed him, pulling away as he tried to deepen the kiss.

"You don't ever stop do you," Jake rolled his eyes at Chris, "you can't just kiss like a normal individual?"

"'Sup short stuff," Chris grinned at Sherry, she blushed and mumbled a greeting. She smiled and greeted Billy and did the same with Jake even though she had just seen him.

"So what were you two talking about?" Billy grinned at Sherry.

"Uh-w-we were just.. talking." Sherry stuttered.

"Why are you stuttering?" Jake asked with a raised brow.

"Uh," Sheva licked her lips and shifted, "it's just girl stuff."

"What type of stuff?" Chris asked.

Sheva scowled, "you really want to know?"

"Yes," all the boys answered at the same time. Sheva stiffened as if she had just been challenged.

"Fine," she smiled dangerously, "we were talking about our periods. You see, this morning when I woke up—

All the boys moaned, silencing her. Sherry laughed as Sheva stood and took a mocking bow at her performance.

"So Sherry," Sheva turned to her with a smile when she had taken a seat, "how was your night?"

"Oh, tiring."

"Yeah," she frowned, "you look a little on the down side."

"You're not sleeping well?" Chris asked Sherry with a concerned gaze.

"It's not that, it's just that last night I had to run to the pharmacy at like… 3 in the morning. It was so tired and then when I got home it was like 3: 45, and I get up at 6 so I am running on 3 hours of sleep."

_"What?"_

Jake's voice cut in abruptly. They all looked to him with frowns, Sherry just stared with confusion. He had a frown in place, and his eyes darkened at her.

"You're walking around this town at 3 in the morning? Are you nuts?"

"It was fine, there was no one on the street and I had a cell phone-

"If you needed to go to the pharmacy that bad why didn't you just call one of us?" He glared, "you shouldn't even be out at that time at all."

"Since when are you her father?" Billy challenged Jake. He slowly turned his crisp blue gaze on the tattooed male beside him, and then smirked.

"I'm not being her father," Jake bit at him, "I'm being rational."

"Jake's right Sherry," Sheva stated, turning to her, "you shouldn't be out at that time… that's just not safe. There are some weirdo's in this town."

"I'm fine, nothing happened." Her voice became a bit stiff.

"But something _could_ have happened," he bit at her, his eyes challenging her to say otherwise, "here." He grabbed Chris' notebook and ignored everyone's shocked stares as he pulled out a pen and jotted something down quickly. He ripped out the paper harshly, ripping it into even smaller pieces and then sliding it to Sherry, she stared at it as it lay upside down before her, "that's my number so that next time you don't have to fucking walk at that time of night," he folded his arms stubbornly and glared at her.

Sheva looked to Chris with a mischievous glint that read, _I told you so_.

Chris looked at Sheva with a stare that read, _Oh shit_.

Billy stared at the paper in front of Sherry with a glare.

Sherry looked at it and courteously picked it up.

His number was sprawled there in messy handwriting and under it he had written his name. Nervously she pulled out her phone and started programming the number into it. He watched her with curiosity and a slight flare of pleasure as she put it in her phone.

"Thanks," she mumbled and looked up at him finally.

"Yeah, whatever," he mumbled and looked off to the side. Sherry noticed a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips and smiled, looking down at her bag and pulling out a sandwich.

"Soo—" Chris started awkwardly, "I made Sheva Chinese food last night!"

* * *

**Oh Chris, you silly goose.**

**And Damn Jake - pulling those movesss...**

**Alright Billy, don't be a hater.**

**:) Hope you liked it, especially the insight into a bit of Sheva and Chris' relationship. **

**Review! And a few of you might notice that I say 'FOR A QUICK update' and that's because I spend almost all my day writing so when people review it's nice to see all the hardwork pay off with just a few words of encouragement. :) That's the explanation behind that since someone mentioned me saying 'Review for a Quick Update'**

**:) BE WELL!**


	8. Rides

**Chapter VIII**

"You haven't missed school in a few days now Jake," Chris noticed on Friday as he and Jake made their way towards the lunch room.

"And?"

"It's pretty weird, that's all I'm saying."

The first thing he thought of before coming to school on Thursday had been the short blonde. He was irritated by it as he brushed his teeth, and even more annoyed by it as he anxiously arrived at school – eager to see her. And then uncaring as he actually saw her in the gym, they spoke of random things and he had learned a few things about her .

The first was that she did not curse, and whenever he would her eyebrows would knit the slightest bit. He also learned that she was extremely secretive, and while this didn't surprise him it made him more curious, and that _did_ bother him. He learned that she lived in an apartment and that the last time she had actually hung out with anyone was when she lived in her previous town. When he asked her why she left she was dismissive and simply stated that it was time for a change.

_Maybe she was bullied or something… _he thought quietly when she had said that.

And then this morning he had woken up with a sense of excitement to see her, and when he lay eyes on her in gym his legs carried him to her automatically.

_I'm a fucking idiot, _he thought as they entered the lunchroom. Instantly he spotted Sheva and Sherry at the table chatting with Billy. Billy seemed to be enjoying whatever the conversation was because his grin looked almost painful.

"What's Billy's problem?" Jake questioned with annoyance, "he's been weird ever since Sherry showed up."

"I don't think he likes her if that's what you're getting at," Chris responded, "I think he just doesn't like you getting the girl, again."

Jake's eyes slid to Chris, narrowed and dangerous, "what the hell do you mean get the girl? We're just friends."

"Oh, yeah, I know," Chris smiled mischievously.

When they reached the table Jake nodded once at Billy in greeting, Sheva pressed her lips to Chris, pulling away before he even started to get carried away, and Sherry smiled at Jake and Chris both.

Jake couldn't pull his eyes away from Sherry, she was still a little flushed from gym, and she looked gorgeous. _And_ she was giving him that grin that made everything disappear. The entire lunch period he just stared at her.

It was when the lunch period was over that Jake purpouselly moved slowly. Chris and Sheva walked away from the lunch table and Billy waved at Sherry. She smiled back shyly and stood, Jake did the same.

"So," he started, watching as she picked up her backpack and her water bottle, "how was your day so far?"

"Great, you know that though, I told you earlier," she smiled.

"That's true," he mumbled awkwardly, following her as she started walking away from the table, "I never asked, how do you get home?" _What the fuck am I doing? _

"Well I walk… I mean it's not that bad."

He raised a brow, "you actually walk?"

"Is that bad?"

"No," he stuffed his hands into his pants and tossed her a sly smirk, "it's just that not many girls walk anymore. They either have cars or get rides."

"Oh well," she shrugged at him and pushed past the double doors of the lunchroom. He followed her to her locker and then watched her switch her books for the last two classes of the day, "what about you? Do you always take your bike with you everywhere?"

"Yeah," he smirked, "I can't be without it."

She grinned at him, "Just like you can't be without the gloves?"

Jake raised a brow, impressed, "you noticed that?"

"Yeah, you never take them off," she shut the locker door carefully and twisted the lock. Then she turned and stared at him, leaning against the locker casually, "why is that?"

He flexed his hands and shrugged, smirking, "my hands are ugly."

"Are you going to tell me the truth now?" She laughed. He nodded.

"I get into fights sometimes, and the bruises on my hands would give that away, so I wear gloves to cover it up." The confession shocked her, he noticed as the smile fell away. He wondered if he had upset her, and a tightening started in his stomach in response. The thought that she might be unhappy with him made him uneasy, "are you mad?"

"No," she shrugged, "although you really shouldn't be fighting."

He didn't respond. Her disapproval made him unhappy, _with himself,_ "I wanted to ask you something."

"What did you want to ask?" the smile returned and her bright blue eyes glittered, stunning him silent for a moment, "hello?"

"Oh, yeah," he moved to her side and leaned against the locker beside her, pressing the back of his boot to the metal door, balancing on one leg. Jake glared at the passing guys who tossed her appreciative looks and she just stared at him, "do you want me to give you a ride home today? On my bike of course."

She blinked, "I don't know Jake… I mean. I really want to, I do…"

Jake pushed himself off the locker and drew closely to the front of her, Sherry's entire body stiffened when his hand went beside and above her head, pressed against the locker. He towered over her and gave her a sly smile, "you want to."

"Yes…" Her breath left her in a whisper.

"So come on, it'll be faster than walking. And more fun."

"Uh…" she blinked up at him, stunned at the smile he was giving her, and the intensity of his stare. People all around them stared with shock at the way Jake Muller towered over the blonde with one hand against the locker and the other in his pocket.

"What do ya' say?"

"Yes…"

"Great, see you after school," he winked at her and moved away, leaving her flushed and embarrassed. She quickly strode off to her next class with a thrill in her chest.

**…**

"Shit…" Jake cursed as he waited for her by his bike. He didn't know what it was about the fact that she had accepted that made him more nervous then he had been in a long time. It was just a ride. So why was he nervous? There was nothing to be nervous about.

When she came out he stood up straight so that she would see him. Her eyes roamed the student parking lot and upon seeing him she smiled and waved and started moving towards him. The closer she came the more his heart pounded, _this is so stupid, I shouldn't be reacting like this… _he thought with anxiety pooling in his stomach.

_I shouldn't be this excited about a ride, _she thought as she came closer to him.

"Am I going to be wearing a helmet?" She grinned at him with humor in her eyes.

"Only if you want to," he shrugged, "I've got mine."

"Don't you need one?"

"I don't wear it," he smirked at her and handed her the large black helmet. She took it awkwardly and tossing her hair back away from her face she pulled it down over her head. He bit his lip as she pulled her hands away and moved her head left and right.

And then he burst into a fit of laughter.

"What!" She cried, placing her hands on her hips, she almost stumbled off balance.

"The helmet is so huge on you. Can you even see?"

"Yes I can see," she huffed and crossed her arms, he grinned.

"Alright come on, get on." He tossed his leg over the sleek bike and watched her. Hesitantly she stepped forward, her head wagged a bit with every step and then she stopped beside the bike. He watched her with a confused frown as she struggled to lift her leg in her tight jeans. Sherry almost had her leg up over the bike... almost.

And then she fell.

"Oh shit!" Jake laughed as she fell on her ass. Sherry blushed within the helmet and stood quickly, embarrassed. Jake still laughed at her.

"That's not funny!" She chuckled slightly and came to a stand. His eyes bulged as she started brushing at the back of her pants, he didn't have an exact view but he imagined it, _her hands sliding and slapping at her ass_, _she's getting me hard. Shit! _

"Okay, back to this again," he got off the bike and watched her moved beside the bike, as close as possible. She pouted within the helmet and timidly watched him approach. His hands went to her hips and firmly gripped her. He didn't lift her immediately.

For a long two seconds he just held her hips, noticing how easily his hands wrapped along the sides. He smiled when he noticed the rise and fall of her chest had picked up, and then very suddenly he firmly tightened his hold and pulled her up and over the bike.

Her hands flew to his shoulders, gripping them firmly and trembling as he eased her onto the large motorcycle and then let her go. She plopped onto it easily and bit her lip as he easily slid in front of her.

"What's your address?"

"420 Veronica Road."

"I know where that is." He nodded, "you know the drill," he smirked at her and a second later her arms slid around his waist. He controlled himself from releasing shiver and ignored the girls who stared with rage and obvious envy.

_He has muscle, _Sherry thought with a blush. She could feel it under her arms.

"Tighter Sherry," he suggested with a dirty smirk as the bike suddenly roared under them. She released a squeak, clutching him tighter and burying the helmet into his back. She felt his back rumble as he laughed.

The entire ride to the apartment she tried to not yank him off the bike by tightening her hold. Naturally they remained silent. She did notice however that he smelled like cinnamon and apples, it was a nice scent. And not only that but she couldn't help but observe, when she did dare to look, that he had very powerful looking thighs, and the muscle from his back would strain against his black shirt when he flexed or tightened his hold on the bike.

When they reached the front of her apartment Jake felt a bit of disappointment. Her arms around him loosened and when the bike stopped they unwound from him smoothly. And very suddenly he felt a cool chill at the lack of embrace.

"You need help getting off?"

"I can do that part," she laughed and slid off, stumbling a bit and then ripping off the helmet. He took it from her carefully and leaned back to shove it into the bag attached to the bike.

"Thanks for the ride," she smiled at him,

He smirked and tipped his invisible hat at her, "anytime."

"Oh uh, here's my number," she mumbled quietly and pulled out a notebook from her bag, she scribbled it down and he watched with a raised brow, "you gave me yours.. I figured it's only fair."

"Thanks," he grinned dashingly at her. Her breath left her and he shoved the paper into his pocket.

"I'll see you on Monday, okay?" She shifted awkwardly.

"No problem, see ya'."

"Bye…" she whispered… and then suddenly threw herself forward and gave him a hug.

He stiffened in her embrace and didn't move, _she's really trying to get me to lose control or something_. The feeling of her arms around him made him feel out of control, and yet all he could do was stand still from shock.

She pulled away quickly, mumbled another quiet 'bye' and then quietly walked towards the apartment door. She looked back at him and tossed him a smile, he winked in return. He caught her embarrassed gaze.

_So cute, _he bit his bottom lip into his mouth and grinned at once. Jake revved the engine and soon he was off with thoughts of the blonde buzzing through his head. All he could do was spare thoughts for her. When he got home he was not shocked to find that his father was not there.

The entire home was his for the day and while he knew it would be strange he wanted to text her and ask her to come over.

_No, I can't do that… _he thought as he lay on his bed and stared at her phone number as he programmed it into his phone, _I'll just text her, _he decided quietly.

**Hey, it's Jake – **simple enough. Did that sound desperate? Texting her as soon as he had free time? No, if anything he'd lie and say that it was because he wanted her t know that he had in fact kept it in his phone, and that that was the only reason he'd texted her..._ I'll lie? So does that mean that there's another reason as to why I'm fucking sitting here like a girl twiddling my thumbs - hoping that she'll answer me right now? I'm such a fucking moron. _He waited anxiously for the reply nonetheless, nervously tapping his fingers on the mattress and watching the phone.

Finally the response came, **Hey Ketchup, :).**

And that was the moment Jake Muller knew he liked Sherry Birkin... as a little bit more than just the new girl at his lunch table.

* * *

**So, are Jake and Sherry... friends? What's going on here? Have you ever been in that situation where you just had to admit that you like someone as a bit more than just mere acquaintances? **

**Now, don't you gals and guys go thinking that this means that I'm going to have them having make out sessions by chapter 10. Because that's just... no. You can assume they've known each other for maybe two weeks. I think that that's enough time for people to generally develop a slight interest in WANTING to get to know someone, so while it'd be nice to think Jake like Sherry in a 'lets be in a relationship' way, thats just not where he's at...**

**yet. **

**So tell me, have you ever been in this awkward stage where you had to admit that you wanted to get to know someone - to yourself? **

**REVIEW! **


	9. Apples & Oranges

**Chapter IX**

The entire weekend passed by much too slowly. Jake tried; he really _tried_ to not be overwhelming with the text messages. But every time a conversation ended he had to start a new one up again. It was just too much anxiety to not know what she was doing, or what was on her mind.

**Are you watching Animal Planet? – **He'd ask. And then a moment after sending it he'd roll his eyes and curse at himself.

**No, should I be? Haha – **she'd answer.

**There's these dogs, they're fucking annoying. Ceasar Millan has got too much patience and you have a weird 'haha' habit. - **He informed her and set the phone down, tapping his leg anxiously and turning off the television. The owners of the dogs were pissing him off.

**What do you mean? My haha's? If I don't put them in things sound too serious. Think about it, if I write 'Hi Jake haha' that's more nice then, 'Hi Jake.' – **Her reasoning made him laugh out loud.

The conversations continued on that way for most of the weekend. And when Monday rolled around he wanted to ask her if she wanted a ride. He decided against it and went to school.

In her classes Sherry had a hard time focusing. Even as she learned about topics she actually liked she couldn't stop thinking about all the funny things Jake had texted her. He had told her that he was pissed, at one point.

**I can't believe this shit. I think I'm going to have a brain aneurysm or some shit. I'm pissed.**

**Why are you pissed? – **Sherry had asked while frowning. She hoped no one had bothered him.

**There are no fucking apples in my house. – **Jake had responded.

Sherry let a giggle past her lips and ignored Mr. Kennedy who raised a brow at her, "is something funny about Vietnam Sherry?" He asked.

Her eyes bulged and Sheva chuckled quietly beside her, "what? No. No! Sorry…" she blushed and shyly lowered her gaze into her textbook. It wasn't even on the right page.

When she got to gym she changed with excitement. Girls looked at her with strange gazes and she ignored them completely before rushing out of the door and trying to look casual as she walked into the gym. She looked around with disinterest, hoping that if Jake was staring at her that he wouldn't think she was looking for him, but she was.

When she spotted him she found that he was smirking in her direction. He wore black, like usual, and strode towards her. She grinned and approached, he just made her feel so… light!

"Did you get your apples?"

He frowned, remembering, "No. I didn't. I haven't had one in three days now and I'm ready to make a trip to the supermarket for an entire bag. And not those _green_ things. I like them red."

She giggled at his picky attitude and conversed easily.

When gym was over she hurried over to her locker and changed, today she wore snug black jeans and a HIM T-shirt. She raced over to the lunchroom and found Sheva there. She hurried over to make as much talk as possible before all the boys arrived.

"So," Sheva grinned wickedly as Sherry sat beside her, "mind telling me what it was that had you so distracted in history today?"

Sherry blinked quickly, "what?"

"I know you heard me," she laughed, her eyes twinkling, "were you thinking of something? Or someone?"

Sherry stumbled over her words, "I don't know what… you're talking about? I was just lost in thought. I don't even remember what I was thinking about."

"I bet I know," Sheva's eyes skated towards the door, they weren't coming yet. She lowered her voice nonetheless, "Jake?"

Sherry blanched and reddened, "What! No! What? Are you nuts? Sheva I'm taking you to a doctor-

"You're so obvious!" Sheva laughed at Sherry, "You need to learn how to lie better. I heard about the motorcycle ride. You know that he doesn't let anyone on that thing? I tried to get a ride from him on it and he almost had a heart attack, explaining the reasons why he had to go alone."

This shocked Sherry, she raised a brow, "I don't get why he couldn't give you a ride."

"Because Jake is an _asshole_," Sheva laughed, "it's a bit different with you though. I don't know, I think he kind of likes you."

"Oh my God Sheva, you need a _surgeon_."

Sheva just laughed at her, "I'm just saying he likes you, I'm not saying he's in love with you."

"Good," Sherry huffed uncomfortably, "how are things with you and Chris?" She asked quietly, trying to change the subject.

"A bit tense," Sheva admitted, "I don't think I can talk about it…"

"No problem," Sherry instantly assured her.

"Hey Sherry, hey Shev!" Chris boomed from a few feet away. Sherry turned with a grin and waved in his direction, hoping she looked normal. Jake gave Sherry a half smile which she grinned at, and then Billy waved at her, she smiled at him.

"Hey," Sheva replied kindly and smiled at Chris, he gave her a kiss and Sheva instantly responded by placing a hand on his chest and reminding him of where they were. He seemed to notice something was off because he frowned at her discreetly and sat beside Jake, Jake and Billy didn't notice it at all.

"What's up? How was everyone's weekend?" Billy started; he seemed to be excited about something. Jake even raised a brow at the way Billy shifted as if he couldn't sit still.

"Nice," Sherry smiled, "how was yours?"

"Great, I met this girl," he grinned foolishly, "she's wants to be a doctor."

"How'd you mean a girl that wants to be a doctor and not a girl that wants to ride a pole?" Jake asked with a very serious look, Sherry tried to not laugh. Billy glared at him.

"I met her at a dinner party my parents threw. Her name is Rebecca, and she's fucking hilarious." Billy grinned now in Sherry's direction, "she's kinda' mousy, like you!"

Jake turned and glared at Billy, "really?"

Sherry quickly laughed, "I'm mousy?"

Billy's eyes widened, "I didn't mean it in a bad way."

"You had better not," Jake muttered so quietly that no one heard him.

"So how was your weekend?" Billy asked Jake with interest.

"It was fine," Jake said with a shrugged. Sherry bit her lip and smiled.

"He's not telling us everything; tell them about the apples Jake!" She laughed at his darkened expression.

"There weren't any apples in the house." He said shortly, "How the fuck are there no apples in my house. We've got pineapples, oranges, KIWI! But no apples? What's this world coming to?"

"That must be hard," Sherry sympathized with a playful tone, "a life without apples."

"What about you guys?" Billy asked, taking a bite out of his burger and staring at Chris and Sheva, "how was your weekend?"

Chris just stared at Sheva silently who was fooling around with her food. Sherry noticed that Sheva's eyes were slightly pink… and that her hands were trembling. _She's going to cry, _Sherry realized.

"Uh, Sheva I have to go to the bathroom, can you come with me? I don't really know how to get there," she murmured quietly. Chris stared at Sheva with a frown as she nodded and quickly stood. Sherry took her hand and hastily pulled her out of the cafeteria, leading _her_ to the bathroom.

They walked down the hallways and quickly Sherry pulled Sheva into the bathroom and checked the stalls, they were all empty.

"Sheva what happened?" Sherry asked as soon as she turned around. But stopped in her tracks at what she saw. Sheva's eyes had reddened, she was breathing very hard as if she couldn't draw in enough air, "Shev what's wrong?" She approached her carefully and put her hand on her shoulder.

"He wants to go, "she croaked, her full lips trembled weakly.

"What do you mean?"

"We were talking about what we want to do after college…" Sherry nodded attentively, "and he told me he wants to go to the _army_." Her eyes moved to Sherry, her breathing came out harsher, "what am I supposed to do Sherry? He's the only person I have… my dad is gone, my mom is gone too. I live with my aunt and they care for me as far as they have to. I have only him and he wants to go to the army," she drew in one shaky breath, her eyes dim and swimming with unshed tears, "I love him."

"I'm sure he knows that Sheva," Sherry whispered, heartbroken for her friend.

"I don't want to stop him from his dreams. But I can't do this… I can't wait for him when I know his life will be spent away from me. That's just not fair to _me_. Every moment that he's away I'll be here, alone, doing nothing. When I see him it'll be in my dreams or on a laptop screen. And every minute I'll be worried that he's dying somewhere in the world!"

"Sheva you can't think like that," Sherry stroked her back soothingly as a tear slipped past Sheva's defenses, "you have to figure this out. You'll figure this out…"

"No we won't Sherry," she whispered, "I spoke to him about it yesterday. He made it very clear to me that…" she shut her eyes and opened them again, as if hoping to clear the tears, "he told me that he was going no matter what. And I can't do it Sherry… I can't.:

"That' doesn't make you a horrible person," Sherry instantly assured her, "it's just not something you can't do. Not many people can."

"But I want to be with him," Sheva croaked, "I love him so much. I can't even think of not being with him but… I can't get over this-

"Sheva!" They heard Chris knocking at the bathroom door. Sheva's eyes narrowed and widened, "I swear I'll go in there if you don't come out."

"It's a girl's bathroom Chris," she laughed back and rolled her eyes despite herself.

"I don't give a fuck!" He hollered back, "you have five seconds. Five… Four… Three… Two—

Sherry opened the door and stared up at Chris with a tilted head, "really Chris? Give her a few minutes."

His brow furrowed and she noticed Jake leaning on a locker behind him, Billy was nowhere in sight, "is she okay?"

Sherry shook her head quietly and shut the door, stepping forward and making Chris move back in turn, "you have to give her a few minutes okay? Just give her that."

"I have to get in there right now," he replied dismissively and moved around Sherry and pushed the door open. Sherry's eyes widened in horror and she looked to Jake, he just shrugged and chewed his gum.

"He's in the girl's bathroom!"

"We don't care," Jake laughed at her and pushed off the locker. Sherry blinked with shock and stood frozen where she was, _Chris was in the girls bathroom!_

Inside they both heard Chris and Sheva arguing back and forth. But mostly it was Chris, "why are you crying? I'll be fine! You know I'll be fine!"

"I don't know that! I can't even believe you're in here what if someone walks in –

"I'll fuck them up for saying something-

"You'll fuck up a girl Chris? Really?"

"Oh shit!" Jake cursed and spotted the principle down the hall making his way towards Jake and Sherry. His steps were purposeful and his round face looked like it was dripping from the summer heat.

"Oh no!" Sherry panicked, "oh God, what do we do?"

Jake frowned as he thought and then very suddenly he had Sherry by the hips and was crushing her to the locker. Her breath left her in one sudden motion and he bent his head to her ear and kept her firmly pressed to the locker. Her breathing stopped as he began talking, "_don't _move."

_Oh God…_ _his body…_

She couldn't even if she wanted to! He had the length of his leg almost all the way between hers. It made her throat tighten. And his thumb was gently massaging her hip bone in circular motions, the firm pressure still kept her pinned to the locker.

She began to feel a heat between her legs that she hadn't felt in a long time for another person, she bit her lip and tried to think of other things, _old men, old saggy men, old saggy women? Excella, yeah! Excella, oh God no that's just torture._

"He'll notice us and send me to the office soon enough," his smooth voice shot all the way down to her toes. She shivered slightly, Jake smirked.

_I guess someone likes this… _he thought cockily.

"Excuse me!" The principle thundered. Jake rolled his eyes and pulled away from Sherry who trembled against the locker, she was as red as the apples he wanted so much, "what in the world do you think you are doing Jake Muller!"

"Nothin', what's up with you?" he shrugged. Sherry's eyes bulged at his disrespect.

"Come with me! And you young lady-

"She had nothin' to do with it, you know that," Jake shrugged, but his tone was warning, if the man got her in trouble he was going to have hell to pay, "what's your name again? Mary? Amber? Sally?" He looked to her, a confused expression on his face.

She didn't reply, she didn't know what he was doing.

"You don't even know her?!" The principle came to a stop in front of Jake Muller. All the noise from within the bathroom stall died. The principle's plump face looked redder then Sherry's, Jake smiled at him.

"I don't care to know their names; I only care to know what's between their le-

"Come with me!" He yelled and turned. Jake threw Sherry a wicked grin. She stared after him with an open mouth.

_That looks sexy, fuck she's going to make me hard… _Jake thought as he engraved the image in his head and walked away from her feeling strangely triumphant.

"You're getting detention!" The principle yelled at him, Jake cast a look behind him and saw Sherry still standing there. He threw her a wink and followed the principle.

…

One day of detention, and the next day he had to spend the entire day with in school suspension, _wasn't too bad,_ Jake thought afterschool as he rested his legs on the table. The teacher, who had wild black hair and beady dark eyes had told him to put his legs down a couple of times now but somehow they always ended up in the same place.

"Jake…" he heard the whisper from his right. He looked there and saw Sherry on the floor; her eyes were on the teacher who was facing her computer with her back towards Sherry.

He gave Sherry a crazed stare and mouthed, 'what the hell are you doing?'

Sherry tossed him a sheepish grin and put her bag down on the floor, she opened it and started searching quietly for something while he threw stares at the teacher, making sure she didn't turn around. When Sherry had stopped looking she pulled out something_._

_Oh fuck… _Jake almost salivated.

Sherry started a slow crawl on her hands and knees towards him and around the tables. His eyes widened as she cautiously balanced her weight and he looked towards the teacher with an intense stare, willing her to keep her eyes on whatever she was looking at.

Jake looked back to Sherry and got an eyeful of her ass, _she's driving me fucking nuts, _he felt himself harden slightly as it swayed with her movements.

The teacher gave a cough and turned her head to Jake. He stiffened and stared back silently with wide eyes. She said nothing and looked down at a paper on her desk before turning back to the computer. He looked to see what had kept Sherry from her vision and noticed that she was pressed behind the last seat of his row, he swallowed anxiously.

Slowly Sherry began to creep forward, hurriedly and nervously. When she was finally beside him, she wouldn't look at him; she kept her eyes on the teacher instead.

Carefully she placed the object on his table. He looked down at her and smirked, she looked up at him and grinned quietly before giving him a quick wave and turning to crawl back out. She made it all the way to the exit with ease and stood up straight once she was past the door.

Dramatically she gave a bow; he gave quiet air claps at her daring move.

"Bye," she mouthed quietly and quickly darted out of his view.

"Bye!" he called out. The teacher jumped with fright and look at him with confusion. He grabbed the apple Sherry had placed on his table and bit into it.

"Where did you get that? And who were you speaking to?" The woman asked with a frown.

Jake shrugged and swallowed back, he licked his lips and smirked, "I don't know. I think her name is Mary… or Amber… maybe Sally?"

"Are you on drugs Mr. Muller?" She asked with a serious stare.

Jake laughed so hard for the next five minutes that she told him to go home early.

_Way to go, super girl._

* * *

**YOU GO SHERRY! SUPER GIRL TO THE DETENTION RESCUE!**

**:) So I hope you enjoyed that chapter, as you can see Chris and Sheva are going through some stuff. Will they figure it out? What do you think you'd do in Sheva's situation? :O Or as Sheva's friend? Next chapter I have something interesting planned, a change of pace. So ...**

**Review :) **


	10. Hands Off

**Chapter X**

The next two weeks passed uneventfully for the most part. Sherry found herself constantly preoccupied with thoughts of Jake, and he found himself stuck with thoughts over her. They both wondered what they were doing, what they were thinking, when was the next time they'd have an experience like what happened in the detention room again.

Those were the thought that preoccupied Sherry as she changed out of her gym clothing with a small smile gracing her face. A lot of her thoughts had become about Jake Muller, it was really very silly. She wondered what his favorite color was, what his favorite show was, what he liked to listen to… things that meant so little and yet meant so much. But he did not occupy all her thoughts.

Her father was not getting any better, his vomiting had stopped but now he had a cough that waked her throughout the night. She was forced to give him shots to try to alleviate his pain but worried that they were not strong enough. Sherry made a mental note to bring this up to her father when she got home.

Jake had also started calling her _Supergirl_, she found the nickname confusing at first and had told him so. He quickly clarified when she had asked him by saying, "you brought me my apple, and the teacher kicked me out for laughing after she asked if I was on drugs."

_He's so weird, _Sherry laughed mentally as she made her way to the lunchroom. It was on this day that something changed between her and Jake Muller.

"Hey! Sherry! Wait up!"

The familiar voice caused a shiver to travel down the length of her arms; she turned slowly and watched him approach. _Steve. _

"Hey," she smiled slightly as he stopped in front of her and cast her a shy smile, "how are you?"

"I'm good, what's up with you?"

She shifted awkwardly, "not much, just school and homework. I've got no life." He grinned at her playful humor, "is there something you needed? I don't mean to sound rude but I just need to get moving."

"Well, I was wondering if maybe you'd like to have some lunch with me today. I mean I know that you sit with Sheva, and Chris and all of them but I thought that maybe you'd like a change of pace. Maybe I could show you around the town a bit and we'll get some pizza? Something quick and easy?"

She smiled, that was so nice, and it was hard not to be kind to him when he stared at her with such a shy gaze, "well I'm not sure I mean I usually have lunch with them like you said, but maybe I can take you up on that some other day?"

"Well today is the only day I could do it, come on," he grinned at her, "please? I promise it will be worth your while. They'll survive without you, come on."

Sherry sighed, "Steve, I don't know I mean… where will we go exactly?"

"We'll go to this really nice spot, there are always a lot of people there and you actually can see the lake, people usually go there to have lunch. It's really cool," Steve smiled.

She sighed, "okay. I'll text them and tell them," he grinned and towed her towards the exit.

**…**

When Jake first approached the lunchroom it was with excitement boiling in the pit of his stomach, he wondered what new fact he'd learn about Sherry today, what new way would she astound his understanding of her.

The girl was consuming his every thought. He tried everything to get her out of his thoughts, but nothing worked. Everything reminded him of her, whether it was an apple, a song, a funny joke, it all led back to thoughts of her.

As Jake let his eyes skate past the flirtatious looks of the female's in his direct line of vision he let them settle where Sherry was supposed to be. But she wasn't there.

Sherry was always there with Sheva before him and the guys arrived, and yet he found Sheva sitting alone and staring at them with the same confusion. _Maybe she's just late_; Jake reasoned as he approached, _she'll be here. God I'm pathetic, freaking out like a little bitch. _

Sheva and Chris who were on better terms greeted each other with the usual kiss, Sheva pulled away first as Chris grinned like a devil and plopped down beside Jake.

He wanted to ask Sheva where Sherry was but figured that she was just as confused as he was.

"Have you seen Sherry?" Sheva asked him with a frown, "she was in first period but she's usually not late."

"Maybe she got stuck in a class… you know how those teachers are," Chris guessed and shrugged.

"She's got gym with me before this, that wouldn't happen," Jake pulled out his phone, "I'm going to ask her."

He looked up Supergirl in his contacts and quickly typed out, **the crew is asking for you, why aren't you here yet? **

As they waited for a response Sheva and Chris made small talk with Jake and Billy.

"So you know about how I wanted us to have like a get together, outside school?" Chris stuffed his mouth with fries and swallowed like a crocodile, "I'm thinking this weekend we kidnap Sherry since she's the one that is always stuck inside her house and we get her over to my place. We can have a sleep over or something, just watch shitty movies and laugh."

Jake smirked despite his tension at Sherry not being in front of him, "I guess that's a good idea. But we should try to warm her up to the idea Chris."

"Well I don't mean literally kidnap her," Chris laughed, "I just think we need to get her out some, that girl doesn't leave her house except to go to school."

Jake frowned as his phone vibrated and quickly pulled up the text, **I'm with Steve, I was just going to text you since I don't have anyone else's number. He asked me to go to lunch with him, I figured I might as well, he was being really nice. Hope it wasn't any trouble.**

_What the fuck?_ Jake cursed angrily and hunched over his phone as his friends stared at him with confusion.

_What was she thinking? Didn't we warn her about him? What was she doing? Fuck, fuck, fuck! _**Sherry where are you? **He didn't want to have his message sound as angry as he felt, and he hated feeling this strange annoyance. It was a tightening at his chest, _what if that motherfucker tries to do something with her? And what if she doesn't stop him. _The thought annoyed him, _I shouldn't even care. _

"Jake what's going on?" Sheva's voice was displaying all the worry on everyone's mind.

"She's with Steve Burnside," He glared at the phone and waited for the text message.

"That fucker, he just can't take a hint can he?" Chris shook his head and glared at Jake, "where is he, we have to go get her. That kid isn't normal."

"I'm waiting for the text but she's not fucking answering-

"Give her a second, Jesus," Sheva shook her head, "so goddamn impatient."

A few seconds later the text came, **we're at some place where Steve says people meet up for lunch, we can see a huge body of water- there's a bunch of people around. It's really very nice.**

"She's at the Boardwalk." Jake stood up and Chris did too, Sheva was already storming towards the exit and Billy was on their heels, "I'm going to kick his ass," Jake fumed.

**…**

"So this is where everyone has lunch?" Sherry smiled as the cool wind chilled the heat on her forehead. Steve grinned at her, "it's really very nice. Jake and Sheva never mentioned it though." _If this is where everyone has lunch why is it that they'd never mention it? _

Sherry and Steve strolled lazily down the boardwalk. There were quite a few people around them, and while Sherry did not know exactly where it was that they were walking she did not worry, there were a lot of people around them. He couldn't try something even if he wanted to.

"So tell me about yourself," Steve smiled curiously at her, she shrugged.

"There isn't really much to tell, I moved here for a change and I live in an apartment. I like to read, and I don't like seafood." _Jake also hates seafood, _she thought offhandedly. He hadn't replied to her last message at all.

"Why did you move here exactly?" Steve asked, when he noticed the knitting between her eyebrows he backtracked, "obviously if it's personal you don't have to tell me."

"I'd rather not talk about it," she smiled, "so where are we going exactly?"

"Meeting up with a few friends of mine, you should get to know them, they're really nice, I think you'd like them."

She stopped walking then and frowned, she didn't like that. Jake had told her about Steve's drug habits… "I'm not sure that's a good idea. I mean I'm really not a people person and while I appreciate your wish to have me… meet people. It's just not something that I—

"Oh come on," Steve grinned at her playfully, "just a meet and greet. You're kind of like a celebrity here you know."

This made her curious, "why would I be a celebrity around here?"

"Well," he shrugged sheepishly, "you're really pretty and sweet… it's different."

She blushed slightly and shook her head, "it's really not that different – people here just tend to be a little blunter then I am with their words." Again the wind stirred, her hair whipped left then right, "I'm going to get going. I can find my way back to the school. Thanks for showing me around, it was really very nice. Thank you."

His face darkened and suddenly his voice became annoyed, "are you kidding me?"

Sherry blinked, confused, "no?"

"I take you out here and I want you to meet my friends and you have to be all rude and just desert me here?"

"I just want to go back to the school," she tried to keep her voice level, "I didn't want to come in the first place, I was supposed to be with everyone else right now but I came because I wanted to have lunch, you now tell me that we're actually going to be meeting your friends-

"You're being so rude."

Her heart stuttered and she jerked back, "excuse me?"

Steve shook his head, almost sadly, "I thought you were different but you're just fucking rude—

"I…" she blanched, unsure of what to say. Had it been rude to deny meeting his friends? She supposed it could be, maybe she was being a bit unfair? She swallowed tensely, regretting this so much more than before, "I'm sorry… I didn't think that it was that big of a deal."

He sighed and ran a hand through his reddish hair, "no, I'm sorry, I've been so stress-

_"Sherry!"_

The voice was coming from behind her. Steve's eyes narrowed and she turned quickly. She hated to admit it but she felt a surge of relief at the sight.

Jake was coming towards her with Sheva, Chris, and even Billy beside him. He was walking the fastest, making him the first in the line they created.

"Jake!" She called back happily, but the smile died away as she took in his dark expression and the fact that his hands were in fists. He looked very annoyed; he was not even really looking at her as much as he was looking at Steve.

People stared with apprehension as Jake Muller marched against the crowd and to her. She realized quite suddenly what was going to happen, "wait, Jake, no! No!"

Jake almost brushed past her but she placed two hands firmly against his chest and tried to stay between him and Steve to the best of her ability.

"I'm going to rip your head off," Jake sneered above her at Steve. Sheva stared at Sherry with a disapproving stare and Chris placed one hand on Jake's shoulder, holding him firmly there while Sherry shook with fear. _Are they so easy to anger to the point of violence?_

"So you called backup?" Steve glared at Sherry as she turned to face him.

"No, they just…" she turned to look at Billy with confusion "what are you all doing here?"

"You told us where you were," Jake said through his teeth, his crisp blue eyes burned at Steve and she stared at him with a bit of apprehension, "and I knew what he was planning almost instantly."

"What are you talking about?" Her eyes widened up at him, it made his anger flare. Steve knew how to pick them, "Jake, answer me…"

"He was going to introduce you to his little buddies and try to get in your pants like he does with almost everyone else," Sheva glared at Steve who was staring at Jake.

"Does it really matter?" Steve retorted, Jake breathed so hard underneath Sherry's hand that she worried he would have a panic attack, she realized only then that she was still touching him, jerkily she removed her hand, "if she's as virginal as she looks she won't go along with it. Or what do you think I'd rape her?"

"Yes." Chris responded and came in between Sherry and Steve. He towered over him, it was almost frightening, "I know that you have a bunch of little pills in your pocket, I'm not as stupid as you might think. If you try to fuck with one of us again I promise you your fingers are going to be in casts before you can blink. Stay the fuck away from us."

Jake looked down at Sherry who was staring at her feet wide eyed and emptily. She looked lost, embarrassed perhaps. It only made the feeling in his chest flare up even more.

S_he shouldn't be feeling like this. And she _wouldn't_ be feeling like this if she had just listened to me! _"Let's go," he commanded and placed his hand on her back as if it were the most natural thing in the world. She jumped slightly but allowed him to turn her around and lead her away from Steve. Chris, Sheva, and Billy followed.

Steve laughed loudly, "She's probably not even that tight, Jake! You should have let me have a test run before you tap it!"

"Shit," Chris grumbled, knowing what was going to happen next.

"Jake!" Sheva cried out as he turned and started storming towards Steve.

Sherry turned just at the moment that Jake threw his arm back and let his fist rush forward. She heard the connection and then the gasps of the people walking by as Steve collapsed backwards onto the boardwalk, crying out, clutching his nose. Red liquid leaked from between his fingers and Jake stood above him.

"Don't you ever come near her again, I'll fucking snap you in half you piece of shit!" Jake yelled down at him.

"Jake!" She ran over to him and took his gloved hand in hers. He looked down at her snappily and then back at Steve who was clutching his nose furiously and shuffling backwards away from the taller male, "Jake look at me, please?"

Slowly he turned his glare down to her, she tightened her hold on his hand, "what?"

"Let's go, let's just go back to school, okay?"

He nodded stiffly.

Sherry towed him hastily away from Steve who was getting help from bystanders. The walk away from Steve Burnside was silent. No one said anything to her and she didn't say anything to them. She could still feel the waves of annoyance flowing off of Jake's shoulders and because of his she opened her fingers to release his hand hesitantly.

When she let his hand his eyes flickered with a look of annoyance and perhaps impatience. They all crammed into Chris' seat and remained silent for the most part.

"I should have broken his fucking leg," Jake growled out, staring out the window with his arm tossed over the back of Sherry's seat, she sat quietly.

"It's good that it didn't get too far," Sheva disagreed, tossing Sherry a sympathizing smile through the rearview mirror, "Sherry and I wouldn't have enjoyed pouring alcohol over your wounds guys."

Chris tossed her an indignant glare, "you think he would have landed one hit on me?"

Sherry choked back a laugh, she knew what Sheva was doing. She loved poking fun at him, Jake looked at Sherry's reflection in the window with annoyance, _she doesn't get how serious this was. _

"Chris," Sheva's hand found his thigh and she squeezed, Chris' teeth gritted, "I know he wouldn't have landed one," her smile was delicate, "he would have landed a couple.,"

"Oh that's bullshit!" Chris disagreed as Sheva laughed, "I would have taken him down in two seconds!"

"You know I'm just kidding," she leaned over and kissed his cheek gently. Sherry smiled, happy to see them back to normal.

"You better be kidding or I might have to go back and prove myself, can't have my woman thinkin' I'm a pussy," Chris grumbled halfheartedly and then smiled cheekily at Sherry in the rearview mirror, "Sherry – this weekend do you want to come over my place and watch a couple of movies?"

She looked down at her hands, "I'm not sure. I mean.. I will see what I can do."

"Alright, no problem."

When they arrived at school Jake didn't say a word to her and just stalked off. It made her heart clench. He didn't even look at her; Sheva noticed too but didn't say anything and waved at Sherry, heading towards her class. Chris and Billy waved goodbye as well and left to go to History.

When school was over Sherry didn't bother to look for Jake or anyone else. She just started heading home instantly. There was a strange urge within her to text him, but she knew that when people were upset they needed time to cool down. And she didn't want to look like an idiot and ask if he was angry, maybe he wasn't.

Back at school Jake mounted his motorcycle. He had been waiting for her for the past twenty minutes and there was no sight of her. He even texted her and she did not answer. _Is she walking or something? Why wouldn't she text me back? She better not be walking in this fucking heat._

With annoyance he let the motorcycle roar to life beneath him and started steering it with ease. He would wait for her at her house then and ask her what in the hell she was thinking.

The ride over to her home took less then thirty minutes. The entire time all he could think about was the sight of Steve standing so close to her. Admittedly it wasn't very close, but it was too close. He needed to be football fields away.

Finally Jake reached the front of her apartment; he lingered there with a heated stare as he waited impatiently for her to show up. He knew she couldn't have been at home yet. He pulled out his phone, she still had not answered him. He sent another, **Are you home? Did you walk?**

And then that comment about having sex with her. It had made him boil, just the thought now forced him to pull out a pack and smoke the annoyance away. Still it lingered.

He couldn't stand the thought of someone _else_ touching her. He had already envisioned what it would be like to be buried in her small body, or what it would be like to have her moaning his name, he loved the idea of her belonging to him and belonging to her.

He waited for at least fifteen minutes before he caught sight of her turning the corner and searching her pockets for her keys. He stood up from his bike and watched her.

She raised her head when she found the keys and stopped walking for two seconds, just staring at him with confusion. Then very slowly she walked towards him and nervously played with the keys.

"Hi Jake," she murmured and stopped in front of him.

"You didn't answer my text," he blew the smoke out of the corner of his mouth and away from her, she frowned.

"Are you stressed or something?"

He ran a hand through his short hair with annoyance, "stop avoiding my question. Why didn't you answer my text?"

"I didn't even see it," she defended herself and pulled out her phone, when she saw then she shrugged, "sorry."

"You shouldn't have gone out with him without telling us-

"I didn't realize that I was a child that needed to tell you guys everything I did and with whom I did it." Her eyes became a bit annoyed.

"He's an asshole."

"I know that, and I won't be hanging out with him ever again. Now," she licked her lips, "what are you doing here?"

His eyes darkened at her, "why didn't you text me and tell me you were walking home?"

Her eyes flickered nervously towards her door and then down to her feet, "you walked away from me like if you were angry at me."

"I wasn't… _fuck_," he ran a hand through his hair nervously, "it's not like that. I was just annoyed at the entire situation; he just annoys the hell out of me."

"Oh, well, it was my mistake then. I'm sorry," she mumbled awkwardly, then let her eyes go up to his intense stare, "I have to get going… thank you for coming and clearing things up, I assume that's why you came here, right?"

He swallowed and nodded, "I'll see you in school on Monday."

She nodded, "I'll see if I can make it to Chris' little sleepover."

Jake smirked, "he's got some issues."

"He's sweet," Sherry smiled and laughed, "even when Sheva loves pushing his buttons." She bit her lip nervously, "I'm really sorry about today."

"It's not your fault," he shrugged and walked towards her door, leading her. Casually he leaned up against the wall and watched her struggle with the keys; her hands were trembling, "are you okay?"

"Yeah," she mumbled, "it's just his comment… I didn't think it'd make you so angry that you'd punch him."

"He crossed a fucking line." He stated fiercely. Sherry finally opened the door and then stood in her entrance, looking at him nervously.

"I live on the second floor," she smiled.

"It looks nice from here," he observed, noting the glossy white tiles. Then his eyes made their way down to her, he leaned against the door frame and smirked down at her as she blushed, "I'll see you this weekend hopefully."

"Y-yeah," she stuttered nervously, "bye Jake."

"Bye," he smirked. She turned and he held the door open, watching her as she made her way up the steps, trying to look away from her ass but failing miserably, _great, now I'm fucking hard again_. "Oh, Supergirl?"

"Mhm?" she turned from where she was and stared down at him as he leaned forward to see her at the top of the stairs, he had a dark look on his face, it made her shiver.

"I don't like seein' guys looking at you like that, next time I might not stop until someone is in the hospital; let's make sure that doesn't happen, don't talk to assholes… except for me."

She blinked and tried to resist a goofy smile, but failed slightly. He chuckled darkly and shut the door, leaving her at the top of the stairs. She heard the motorcycle roar to life and then move away from the apartment building.

_Jake is jealous? I think Jake is jealous. He doesn't like it when guys look at me like that, he likes me? Does that mean he likes me? Who cares! He has some sort of interest in me right? _

She broke out into a small happy dance, jumping and twirling in a circle, dangerously close to the stairs.

The rest of the day neither could keep a grin off their face. Not even as Sherry almost burned herself cooking dinner and texting Jake. Not even as Jake's knuckles protested against him texting her, and not even as his flesh burned at the alcohol he poured over the wounds from the punch he threw at Steve Burnside.

It was all worth it.

That night as Jake played with Chris online through the Playstation, and Sheva scolded Chris for not shooting the right enemy in the background, Jake couldn't stop thinking about what Sherry could have been doing with Steve. What if she hadn't said no to him? What if she had let him touch her? The thought of Steve's skinny fingers on her made him sick to his stomach.

"What the fuck! Keep your head in the game you asshole! You suck!" Chris raged over the headset as Jake shot him by mistake.

Eventually Jake and Chris won and he turned off the system. He went to the bathroom and started showering. Not shockingly he found that she was in his thoughts. Gritting his teeth he wrapped his hand on his erection and imagined her there with him, kissing him and encouraging him to take her with soft words and nips at his neck, his hand moved faster up and down his stiffened cock. He imagined burying himself inside of her and having her scream with ecstasy under him, pleading with him.

"Fuck!" He hissed out as he came. Jake pressed his forehead to the tile and moaned as his entire body went rigid and the image of her faded.

That was the moment that Jake Muller knew that he wouldn't stand the sight of someone else with her. _What the fuck is wrong with me? I shouldn't give a fuck about her! She's nothing to me... _

And yet the idea of her moaning under someone else made him numb all over.

He wanted her to himself.

* * *

**Well... Damn!**

**So that was chapter 10 :) I hope you all liked it! As you can see I don't really want to start this immediately with insane fights and insanely quick interests, he feels jealousy, but even Sherry is like 'this doesn't mean he likes me,' but she does realize that he is jealous. So, they are still in a bit of an awkward stage. This is not going to be a story where he is in love with her after knowing her for three weeks, that is just... no. XD Don't expect passionate declarations of love after a month. Expect realistic silent jealousy.**

**So please REVIEW! It makes me so happy. This was also the longest chapter, so please tell me what you think!**


	11. 21 Questions

**Chapter XI**

"You've gotta' come," Sheva explained over the phone to Sherry who was making toast on the other line, "it's going to be fun."

"Yeah but I have to do so many things," she complained and squaked when the toast jumped up, scaring her.

"Wow, was that the toaster?" Chris asked from Sheva's line.

"It was," Sherry laughed and pulled out the bread, "what would we do?"

"We'll probably put on a movie or something," Chris answered her – taking the phone from Sheva, "I would say we're going to actually watch it but… I know Sheva and you are just going to talk through the entire thing."

"I resent that!" Sheva called from somewhere. Sherry laughed.

"Okay I'll see what I can do, I'll call you guys in an hour with an answer."

"Great."

When Sherry hung up on Chris she was instantly heading towards the bedroom, she hoped her father said yes, but a piece of her felt apprehensive, what if he did? Then she would stay over Chris's apartment with Sheva, Jake, and Billy… and he would be here all alone.

"Dad?" She entered the room nervously; he looked up from the book he was reading wearily, "can I talk to you really fast?"

He nodded, and set the book aside as she approached. Her eyes looked nervous and jittery as she settled beside him on the bed, "what is it Sherry?"

"Well, I have these friends, at school," she stared him in the eye, "they're really nice, they're not drug users or anything like that. Sheva, she wants me to go to a sleepover they are having… so I was wondering if I could go."

He stared at her with a very serious expression, "that's wonderful," he said, "but are there going to be any guys there?"

Sherry licked her lips, they had suddenly dried, "uh yeah, her boyfriend, this other girl Rebecca and Billy, he likes her, and then there is Jake."

"And who does Jake like?" Her father asked suspiciously, "you're telling me there is Sheva and Chris. Rebecca and Billy, Jake… and… then Sherry Birkin."

"Dad, we're all just friends. I swear." She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, "I just don't want to leave you here alone."

"Sherry, go enjoy yourself," he sighed with a smile, "if anything happens I'll give you a call."

"Do you promise?" she gave him a serious stare, "no matter what you have to call me dad, doesn't matter what it is."

"I swear," he smiled as she pressed her lips to his cheek, "have fun."

"Bye dad, you don't want anything before I go?"

He shook his head and bid her farewell.

Sherry jogged to her room and started excitedly packing. She packed a pair of shorts, black socks, and a black shirt. Sherry pulled out her cell phone and texted Sheva telling her that she was on her way.

**…**

"Oh my god!" Sheva cried out.

"Jesus!" Jake stared at her with annoyance, "what are you yelling about?"

She grinned madly at her phone, "Sherry – she's actually coming."

His heart gave a slight stutter, he remained stoic and rolled his eyes, "and you had to scream like that?" _He_ wanted to jump and pump his fist in the air, so he tightened his hold on the water bottle instead; Chris popped his head out of the kitchen.

"She's coming over?" He asked, when Sheva nodded he gave a bright grin, "nice. You girls can take the bed along with Rebecca. Jake, Billy and me-

"And I-" Sheva corrected.

"And _me_," he insisted, "will take the floor."

"You're a pervert," Jake smirked slightly, "you just want to watch them when they sleep and act like Edward Cullen."

"Hey," Sheva slapped his arm, "my boyfriend is not a pervert, and neither is Edward."

Jake stared at her for a long time, "wasn't Chris staring at your ass for almost an entire night when you two first went out to a party?"

"What?" Chris stepped out of the bathroom, staring wide eyed, "I didn't know you noticed that!"

Sheva ducked her head and grumbled something about Sherry. Jake frowned and thought for a moment… _she doesn't have a car. Is she taking a cab? _"Is she taking a cab?"

Sheva shook her head and stood from the couch, "she told me she's walking."

"Are you serious?" Chris frowned from the kitchen, "she should have asked for a ride. Give her a call maybe she's still in her place, I'll go get her. I won't mind."

"She left her house like ten minutes ago…"

"Shit!" Jake cursed and stood with annoyance and stood from where he was, storming towards the door and bending to put his boots on, "why didn't she tell one of us?"

"Oh, I totally know the answer to that Jake," Sheva answered sarcastically, "she'll be fine Jake, she's a big girl—

He was already out the door.

**…**

"Pick up," he muttered angrily as he called her for the second time.

_She's so damn stubborn, I give her my phone number so that she can call me when she needs a ride and instead she decides to ignore it. What the hell is it with her? She doesn't get that there are creeps here, does she? I don't think so or else she'd fucking call me like a normal person and ask for a ride! God damn it. _

The phone was about to ring for the seventh time when it suddenly stopped and her voice came through.

"Hello?"

"Sherry," his tone was disapproving, "where are you? Are you trying to give everyone a heart attack?"

She smiled, "Jake, don't worry I'm almost at Chris' place. It's really not that far from where I live." She turned a corner and continued walking, "where are you exactly? I think I see you, a strange brooding man coming my way."

He stiffened, "that's not me."

"Jake, I'm kidding," she grinned, "I'm literally a block away from Chris' place, where are you exactly?"

"I'm about to turn a corner, I'm sure I'll see you then." Sure enough, as soon as he turned he caught sight of her coming towards him. She smirked and hung the phone up, jogging towards him as he stopped and shoved his hands into his pockets.

_She looks nice, _he thought as she came his way in a tight t-shirt and snug jeans. Sherry also appreciated his clothing with a little more subtlety. He wore a loose fitting black t-shirt and a pair of black sweats, and like always, combat boots.

"Are you gearing up for war?" she laughed when he was in hearing distance, "you always wear those types of boots."

"You're going to give me a heart attack, you know that?" His voice was annoyed; Sherry smiled sheepishly, "you should have told me."

"Sorry," she patted him on the arm, "you'll live."

He scowled as she laughed at his expression and then continued walking towards Chris's apartment, "so your parents gave you permission."

"Something like that," she grinned, noticing how intense his eyes looked into the darkness and under the dim lights of the street lamps, "so are Billy and Rebecca going to make it? I know that Sheva is excited to meet her, she seems to think that she'll be this tall blonde with green eyes and killer legs."

Jake laughed at that, she grinned back, "as if Billy could ever get someone like that."

"So what are you expecting?" Sherry grinned at him, he shrugged, and not daring to look at her for fear he might start gawking like an idiot.

"I'm expecting Gollum."

**…**

"My goodness," Sheva stared at the door with a wide stare, as Sherry's laughter rang from outside the apartment, "do you hear her laughing? He's really not that funny, Jake has the sense of humor of a fish." Chris raised a brow at the analogy, "meaning he's not really all that funny."

"Am I funny?" He asked with a grin, "I make you laugh all the time."

"Yeah, uh huh," she nervously ducked her gaze as he gave her a scowl; she cackled and skipped to the door before Jake could push it open. As soon as Sheva opened it she bounded into Sherry with a bear hug. The smaller girl fell to the floor.

"I'm so happy you're here!" Sheva exclaimed happily, Sherry laughed on the ground, Jake watched with a slightly jealous gaze as Sheva straightened up over Sherry, straddling her hips.

"Damn," Chris grinned as he came into the doorway, "this is a nice vision."

Jake tossed him a glare as Sheva laughed at Sherry's vicious blushing, "get off her, you're gonna' suffocate her."

"Are you calling me fat?" She glared up at him playfully.

"Are you calling me small?" Sherry added.

Jake smirked and crouched until he had Sheva at eyelevel and Sherry stared up at him with confusion, "you two aren't going to guilt me into anything. Now, get up or I'm locking the two of you out."

"Or," Chris stepped forward, "we can always just make you."

Sheva glared, "you wouldn't—

Chris grabbed her around the waist and pulled her over his shoulder. She yelled and pounding her fist into his back as Jake took Sherry's hand and helped her up, "Billy should be here with Gollum soon."

She laughed loudly as she stepped into the apartment.

The apartment itself was nothing large, but it was so personal that she could feel all of the immense character within the place. Chris' entrance gave her direct view of the living room. There was a brown couch facing a flat screen TV. To her right there was an opening to a small kitchen with an open space that gave him direct vision into the living room.

"Sit with me," Jake told her as he moved forward towards the living room, she stood where she was shyly, unable to move from the entrance.

"Should I take off my shoes?"

"Yes please," Chris grinned from the kitchen.

After making small talk and complimenting Chris on his simplistic apartment she made her way to Jake with a smile on her face. He looked at her very seriously as she plopped down beside him, Sheva and Chris cooked in the kitchen.

"Are you still annoyed?" she asked with a small playful smile, "you know I can take care of myself right?"

"That's not the point," he huffed and stared at her very seriously, "what if something did happen?"

"I'm Supergirl!" She stated indignantly, hoping to make him smile, "no one's going to mess with me."

_They better not… _he thought and gave her a sly smile, "you know they're going to pick you for information about your background. You're quite a mystery, you know that right?"

Sherry smile faltered, "really?"

"We don't know anything about you."

"Well I don't know anything about you guys either," she smirked and stared at him with an interested gaze, "are we going to play 20 questions or something."

"Great idea!" Sheva statedd from the kitchen and proceeded to drag Chris out roo, although he came very willingly, "take a seat Chris," she smiled. Chris sat cross legged on the floor and Sheva sat beside him, holding his hand in her own and grinning at Sherry who was blushing, and Jake who was rolling his eyes.

"Now remember, if a question is too serious – just pass," Chris smiled, Sherry bit her lip nervously, "and we all have to answer the questions. So, with that being said, what's your favorite television show? I like The Office."

Sheva answered next, "Game of Thrones…"

Sherry thought for a long moment, Jake watch with interest as she scrunched her face up, "The Walking Dead."

He raised a brow and smirked before answering, "Chris, you know." Sherry looked to Chris with interest.

"He likes The Walking Dead too," Chris grinned at her, she smiled back.

"My turn," Jake thought before asking, "Stupidest pick up line you've ever used? I don't have any and you know that's true Chris so don't give me that look."

Chris grumbled with annoyance and Sherry answered with a hard blush, "I was eleven, my friend convinced me to go up to the most popular guy and ask for his number by saying, "excuse me, I lost my number, could I borrow yours?"

"That's not that bad," Sheva laughed, "I went up to someone when I was 13 and said, "I'll give you five seconds to give me your number or you can forget about going out with me forever."

Chris laughed as did Sherry, Jake chuckled at it and then they all looked at Chris expectantly… but then there was a knock at the door.

"Oh! There's the door!" He quickly jumped up before answering and ran for it. Jake looked at Sherry with a smirk, "Billy and Gollum are here."

He turned just as Billy and his friend walked in.

"Hey!" Billy grinned at them all, "this is Rebecca."

Behind him a small girl about the same height as Sherry stepped out. She smiled and waved at them all, Sherry grinned at her and took in her appearance.

The girl wore a green T-shirt and Capri cargo pants with combat boots. Sherry also noticed that she had dim blue eyes, but they were wide enough to draw attention to how round they were. And her hair was just a bit shorter then Sherry's and a faded brown.

"Hi," she greeted them.

"Hey!" They all grinned back, Jake looked at Sherry and subtly raised his brow, _I guess she's not Gollum, but that voice is going to get fucking annoying real fast. _

After introducing themselves to one another quickly and settling down Sherry politely offered Rebecca her seat, Rebecca declined politely. Jake was relieved by this.

"So," Sherry smiled at Chris, "are you going to answer about what was the worst pick up line you ever used?"

He scowled at his thighs as he sat cross legged, Jake snickered quietly and subtly covered his mouth, Sherry looked at him with confusion. He seemed to know the answer. Chris finally answered after a long drawn out moment, "are you wearing space pants? Because your ass is out of this world."

"What the hell!" Billy burst into wild laughter and Rebecca leaned onto him, snickering as Jake grinned madly.

"Now tell them how old you were and who you used it on," Jake instructed Chris who was blushing rabidly. When he didn't answer Sheva did.

"He used it on me right before he asked me on a date… he was sixteen," she chuckled, "he thought it would make me laugh, and it did. So I said yes."

"At least I got the girl," he smiled and pulled her into her arms.

"Next question," Billy grinned, Rebecca blinked up at him, stunned by his dazzling look, "what was the worst date you've ever been on."

It turned out Sherry, Jake, Rebecca, and Billy had never been on a date. It shocked her to find that out.

After a few more rounds of questions and laughter – mostly because of Sheva and Chris, things took a more serious turn. By this point Jake was stretched out on the couch almost to the point where his feet were touching Sherry's thigh but not quite as he kept his knees bent and one arm behind his head.

"So," Chris started, "what was the worst relationship you've ever had."

Sheva started, "I was… sixteen, and it really wasn't a relationship but he thought it was," Chris stiffened beside her, "basically he started trying to get me to go out with him really bad…"

"She's downplaying it," Jake interrupted, "he was stalking her."

Chris jumped in, "he was a fucking asshole. Next."

Jake shrugged, "I never had a really bad relationship. I didn't care enough to get hurt." Sherry's curiosity perked up at this but she couldn't really pinpoint why… maybe it was the knowledge that as far as she could tell – Jake Muller was not a guy for relationships.

"I had a boyfriend who tried to run away with me once," Rebecca shrugged with a smile, "had to breakup with him. He was watching too many romance movies."

"Oh my gosh," Sheva laughed, "that's awful."

"Imagine," Rebecca grinned, "he honestly thought I was going to give up everything to run to _South America."_

Chris laughed at that, "my worst relationship… I don't really have one."

"Same," Billy shrugged, "the worst relationship I've ever had has been with my XBOX… fucking controller."

"You suck," Jake rolled his eyes, "and so does XBOX. Get with the program, Playstation."

"Fuck yeah!" Chris agreed, "Sherry, your turn."

Nervously she bit her lip, all eyes turned on her and Jake stared at her nervous expression with a dark curiosity. He could tell that there was something she wasn't going to let out. Her hands began to tremble the slightest bit, but only he noticed as she clasped them firmly together.

_What the fuck? _

"No bad relationships," she smiled perfectly, "but I did get ditched at a restaurant once… I was fifteen."

"What restaurant?" Rebecca asked with interest.

"Burger King."

**…**

That night they got no movie watching done. Jake stared at Sherry half the time, wondering why she had avoided the question in a manner that was so obvious to him. He recognized the signs of dismissal in her very clearly although it seemed no one else did.

Sherry was stuck with thoughts of her father and how he was doing. Sheva flirtatiously pushed Chris away when he tried to kiss her, and Rebecca nodded off on Billy who was also falling asleep.

"Girls, go to bed," Chris laughed when he noticed them all nodding off.

"We'll take the futon," Sheva mumbled dreamily, snuggling into his large frame, "you guys take the bed."

"I'm not sleeping with Chris on the bed," Billy shook his head, "he's going to start rolling all over the place."

"Hey, I'm not a bad sleeper," Chris disagreed, Sheva chuckled, "Jake is the one that rolls onto people and doesn't wake up."

Sherry perked up at this and laughed, Jake frowned and spoke, "'s not my fault."

"Alright," Chris slowly stood, picking up Sheva along the way, she snuffled into his chest and shut her eyes, "I changed the bed sheets girls, don't worry. You're safe from my love sweat-

"Aw, gross!" Sherry laughed and stood.

Jake watched her with an interested gaze as Billy followed Chris to the bedroom with Rebecca behind him. He noticed that Sherry's shirt rode up a bit as she stretched, he raised a brow appreciatively.

"You're tired."

"Yeah," she smiled and fell back onto the heel of her foot, "I haven't been sleeping well lately."

"Bad dreams?" He asked with interest. She shrugged, "something like that then?"

"Something like that."

He nodded, accepting this, "so are you ever going to really tell us why you moved here?"

She shook her head, "I doubt it. It's not an interesting story, and it'll be fun to hear what you guys come up with anyway." She grinned at him then, her eyes were pink from exhaustion and walked until she was beside him, "night Jake." Before she could get away his hand suddenly shot out.

She stilled as he grabbed her hand firmly in his. He stared up at her seriously from where he lay on the couch. She looked down at him with confusion, his hand felt like hot water on her flesh, but it was relaxing, even though his eyes were steely.

"What happened when Chris asked about bad relationships?" he knitted his brows, "You froze up."

Sherry blinked down at him and slowly pulled her hand out of his, "nothing… it's really nothing, I promise."

He didn't believe her, but pushing the matter wouldn't him answers, "you sure?"

"Yeah…"

"Fine," he crossed his arms and gave her that permanent smirk. Yet his eyes still held all the seriousness of the world, "night."

"Goodnight," she whispered and scurried out of the room.

A few minutes later the girls were all on Chris' large bed sleeping and the guys were in the living room, they stayed up playing video games, only Jake remained pensive on Sherry's odd behavior at the question. In the room next door Sherry dreamed of Jake Muller's concerned gaze.

Jake Muller was not going to just let this go, they both knew it.

* * *

**Something going on... Jake, time to get your investigators hat on. **

**So I hope you enjoyed it! Kind of starting to get more into Sherry's background... and clearly Jake has a bit of reputation in the school for his habits. O_o And Chris' comment about 'Jake is the one that rolls onto people' is basically a hint at, Jake gets around and therefore so do his sleeping habits :O **

**REVIEW! **


	12. The Friend

**Chapter XII**

"Okay, so here's how we're going to do this," Sherry giggled as she shut the door to Chris' bedroom behind her. In her hand she held two cups of water, "Rebecca you and Sheva will throw the water on them all. I'm going to be here and shut the door on them before they can chase us down. The two of you have to get back here quickly. Okay?"

Sheva grinned wickedly, "Let's do it."

Rebecca and Sheva tip toed to the living room carefully. Sherry covered her mouth to retrain the giggles from waking up the guys.

Jake was sprawled on the couch in a dark T shirt and navy blue sweats. One of his legs was thrown over the back of the couch, Chris lay face down on a blanket, with his arm stretched out like if he were a superhero. Billy's leg was thrown over Chris's left calf and he snored quietly, his hair was sprawled across his face.

Sheva stopped walking and bent over, biting her lip and covering her mouth to stop from laughing. Rebecca went over to Billy and Sheva approached Jake and Chris who were close enough to wet very quickly.

Rebecca looked to Sheva and nodded.

Very quickly Rebecca poured the water all over Billy's face whose eyes snapped open with shock. Sheva did the same with Jake and Chris.

"What the fuck!" Chris sprung up onto his feet. Sheva gave a squeal and grabbed Rebecca as the boys sprung up onto their feet, spluttering water and cursing as Sheva and Rebecca both sprinted towards Sherry.

"Shit!" Sheva squealed as Chris chased after.

She slid into the room dramatically and Sherry shut the door and pressed her body against it, hoping to keep them out.

"What the hell was that!" Billy shouted stupidly, looking around wildly as Jake sat up and wiped his face with his hand. He looked to Chris who was standing by his bedroom door with a grin.

"We are so getting them back," Chris laughed as he turned; Jake nodded and stood with a serious gaze.

"Billy, get the powder," Jake ordered, "Chris, run the shower water."

**…**

When they approached the bedroom door they could hear the girls whispering with confusion. Chris turned to his friends like if her were the captain of an army team, "I'll grab Sheva, Billy you get Rebecca, Jake you've got Sherry. Billy, did you put the powder in the bathroom?"

"Yes," he nodded.

"Okay, once you get Rebecca in the shower I'm putting Sheva in, Sherry goes last, she's clumsy. It'll make it hard for them to get out. Billy you grab the power and dump it all over them."

"Got it."

"Jake, you turn off the lights. Then get out and I'll shut the door." Jake nodded, "alright guys… 1…2…3—

They burst through the door. Instantly Sheva jumped towards the bed in an attempt to get away from Chris who lunged for her. Rebecca stayed frozen in the corner, Billy approach her in a run and grabbed her around the waist and instantly carried her towards the bathroom as she kicked and laughed. Jake spotted Sherry in the corner and slowly stalked towards her with a smirk on his face as she trembled.

"You ass!" Sheva shrieked at Chris as he grabbed her ankle and pulled. Sherry darted left to save Sheva but Jake grabbed her around the waist and pulled her out the door.

"No! No!" She laughed. He chuckled darkly and passed the couch and finally they were in the bathroom.

Rebecca was trembling like a leaf and Jake pushed Sherry into the shower stall. She shrieked at the cold water and suddenly Sheva was forced into it and Chris rapidly shut the door.

"Get the powder!" He yelled like if he were in the middle of war.

"No! No! My hair!" Sheva pounded on the shower door. Sherry looked in the shower blindly for the knobs to shut the water off and then found it. She shut the water off but suddenly stilled, "DAMN IT CHRIS!"

Powder rained down on them like snow. Rebecca screamed bloody murder and Sherry shut her eyes as Sheva cursed like a sailor and suddenly forced the shower door open. They spilled to the tile messily and Chris laughed his ass off in the entrance with Jake and Billy behind him.

"You! You!" Sheva didn't even know what to say as she stood, covered in white. Sherry stood and made a dash at the door but Chris shut it in her face, but not before shutting the lights.

"Those idiots." Sherry muttered under her breath and blindly searched for the switch to the lights. She found it and turned to the mirror as the lights flicked on above them. She sighed heavily, "okay, turn the water on; we need to get this out of our hair. Sheva you can shower first, Rebecca and I will turn our backs."

**…**

"You think they're mad at us?" Chris asked with apprehension as he gave a plate with scrambled eggs to Jake. Billy was holding the doorknob so that they wouldn't open it. They could hear the shower water running, "what if Sheva is seriously mad?"

Jake shrugged and chuckled, "did you see Sherry and Rebecca's faces when we put them in the water? They were in shock; Sheva looked like she was going to strangle you Chris. I think that she's probably mad."

"Let us out!" Rebecca pounded at the door. Billy bit his lip.

"I think it's time to let them out."

Chris sighed, "Jake get the chocolate. Hopefully that'll calm them down."

Jake reached for the Hershey kisses and set it on a plate. Billy watched Chris apprehensively and then let go of the door knob slowly before stepping back, "it's open!" he informed them.

Sheva pulled the door open in a fury and her dark eyes traveled around the living room to where Chris was. When she spotted him her eyes narrowed, he shot her a goofy smile and a meek wave.

"Hey, Shev, what's up-

"What's up?" She seethed and approached him slowly, he backed up, and Jake chuckled and stuffed his mouth with eggs, "what's up is that I still have powder stuck in my hair. What's up is that you retaliated with more force than necessary," she was in the kitchen now and he had nowhere to run.

"Aw, come on, Shev," Chris smiled and wrapped his big arms around her, kissing her cheek gently, she frowned as her annoyance wavered, "you know I'm just playing."

Her annoyance crumpled, she smiled and pecked him on the lips, "I'll get you back. I hope you know that."

Sherry came out of the bathroom with a grin in Jake's direction. He smirked at her wet hair. When she came to his side she extended her hand, he shook it seriously.

"Well fought," she laughed.

After Rebecca slapped Billy on the arm, and they all apologized to one another they sat down on the couch and ate Chris's apology eggs. Sherry kept glancing at the time. It was 12:00, soon she would have to leave.

"Jake," she looked to him shyly as everyone else spoke. His eyes slid to her, "uh, I have to go home soon. Would you mind giving me a ride?"

"Just tell me when you gotta' go," he nodded, and then he decided that he wanted to talk to her some more, "so tell me, is there a reason that you're so patient with people?" She gave him a confused stare, "is it _innate_?" She laughed, "you came out of there smiling like if you just won the lottery and not like if we dumped bags of powder on you," he paused, "Chris will probably make me and Billy pay him back for those bags."

"Well," she shrugged, "I guess that life is to be enjoyed. And living so angrily it's just such a waste of time, there will come times where one must truly be angry or upset, and it's strange but being upset all the time is seriously… draining and boring."

"Some people can't help but be annoyed all the time," Jake disagreed with a shrug, he set the plate down and stared at her with interest, "things just… piss people off all the time."

"It's a matter of making a conscious effort to not be so angry all the time. There will come a time to be angry, for all of us."

Sherry and Jake continued talking and eventually she noticed that it was 12:23. She stood from where she sat and went to Chris' bedroom and changed. She came out wear black sweats and a blue shirt, she noticed Jake looking at her up and down. She blushed and did her best to pretend that she didn't notice.

"I'm ready to go."

"It was so nice meeting you," Rebecca grinned and shook Sherry's hand, "I can't wait for next time. There's actually a carnival soon so maybe we should all meet up there."

"That'd be great," Sherry smiled. Jake stood from where he was and put on his boots. Chris stood and pulled Sherry into a hard embrace, "thanks for having me Chris, this was really fun."

"Yeah, you have to come back sometime." He pulled back and Sheva pulled her into a tight hug.

"I'll see you in school tomorrow."

"For sure, and we'll discuss what revenge we're going to take on them."

"I have something in mind," Sheva winked, "it's good, I'll tell you about it tomorrow," Sheva kissed Sherry's cheek and plopped down onto the couch.

Sherry walked over to Billy and gave him a hard hug, he ruffled her hair, "I'll see you Monday."

"See you!" She grinned.

"Oh god, come on," Jake huffed impatiently and placed his hand on her back and led her out the door, impatient to have her to himself. When he shut the door he took her book bag from the hand without permission and slung it over his shoulder.

"You sure you don't want me to carry that?"

"I'm sure," he smiled and led her out of the apartment building and to the motorcycle outside.

"Is there a reason you chose this and not a car?"

"Of course," he handed her the book bag, she pulled it on properly and waited for his answer, "it pisses my dad off."

She smiled and bit her lip awkwardly… "uh… the bike."

He laughed and approached her, he crouched slightly and slid his arm around her waist so that she was lifted against his side. Quickly she threw her leg over the other side of the bike and slid onto the seat.

"I need to get a lift to get on this bike."

"Don't do that," he said in a warning tone and mounted in front of her, _I won't have an excuse to touch you_. Her arms winded about his waist, "firmer Sherry," he turned his face she stared at her, her eyes widened, _all innocent and gorgeous_, "are you always going to hold onto me like if I'm glass."

"I – I—

He let the motorcycle come to life, interrupting her. Instantly she wrapped her arms around him, tightly, "you shouldn't duck your head, you miss the entire ride."

"Okay," she whispered like a frightened bird behind him. He chuckled and they were off.

Sherry couldn't help but grin wildly as they zipped through the streets, he did not break the law, which she was grateful for, but she couldn't help but feel as if they were on a rollercoaster. "Oh my god!" She shrieked with glee as the wind swept through her hair. Jake grinned and turned a corner.

Before they knew it they were in front of her apartment, she moved off the bike with glee and stepped away as he moved off it.

When he turned and stared at her he covered his mouth and stifled chuckles. Her eyes widened with shock.

"What?" He bent over and stared at her with laughter streaming out of his mouth. She placed her hands on her hips and blanched, "What!"

"Your hair," he grinned, "it looks like you just left the Dragon Ball Z universe… you look like… Vageta."

Her eyes bulged, "Vageta from Dragon Ball Z?"

"Yeah," he laughed as she tried to smooth her hair down. She blushed as he kept laughing at her and then quietly stalked towards the apartment, he followed after her with a laugh as she put her key into the entrance.

"So this is it?" He smirked down at her.

"So I guess this is it," she smiled, "I'll see you Monday. Thanks for the ride… and the powder in my hair."

"You're very welcome," he chuckled leaned against the entrance. Nervously she bit her lip and looked off; he narrowed his gaze, "when are you free next?"

Sherry raised a brow, "I don't know, I mean… I am usually busy, why?"

"We should hang out," she blushed, "Maybe go to dinner or something," he grinned dazzlingly at her, "and not just Burger King."

"McDonalds?" She smiled.

He shook his head, "maybe Wendy's," she laughed at this and he smirked.

She stared at him and leaned against the opposite side of the door frame, her wild hair was still untamed, "I don't know what to say."

He smirked and pushed off the wall. Her breath caught in her throat as he approached her. His shadow fell over her frame and his hand came up, playfully he took her chin in his hands and tilted her face up at him. His crisp gaze filled her with warmth, "think about it."

She nodded gently and he pulled his hand away, "bye Jake," she almost stuttered it out.

"Bye Supergirl," he smirked and went to his bike. He mounted it and watched her clumsily find the doorknob with her eyes on him, "think about it alright?"

"I will," she nodded.

"Bye again."

"Bye Jake." He gave her a flirtatious wink and licked his lips quickly. She reddened at this and he zoomed off.

Sherry stood there for a long time and bit her lip anxiously. He wanted to go out on a date with her and she was not sure that she didn't want it. With a laugh Sherry started making her way up the stairs but very quickly her phone rang. She sighed and looked at the Caller ID as she pushed the key into her door.

It was not a number she recognized, she didn't bother to pick it up and stepped into her apartment. She heard talking from her father's room and cautiously walked over.

On the bed her father rested, he looked to her with a smile on his face. There was a man standing beside him.

"Sherry, I want you to meet my friend." He stated in greeting, she blinked. She knew what 'friend' this was. This was the one her father hoped she would stay with after he passed; she had made it clear that she had no intention of staying with anyone but in their apartment, even after he passed.

"I' m Sherry," she extended her hand to the man. He turned his stoic face towards her and shook her hand firmly.

"Albert Wesker."

* * *

**:O Damn you Boys, damn you and your powder, and THIS is the 'friend' that Mr. Birkin had in mind. Well then. Let's what... happens With this little... meeting. :O **

**Review :) Did you like it? :) **


	13. Absence

**Chapter XIII**

Sherry blinked at the man. He towered over her, just like everyone else. But his height was almost... _oppressive_. Albert Wesker's mouth was seriously set, and his blonde hair was pulled back from his face. He had a very straight nose, thin expressionless lips with high cheekbones and a sharp jaw bone. But why was he wearing sunglasses? _Maybe there is something wrong with his eyes?_

He was even dressed severely. He wore a black leather jacket that touched the back of his knees and a fitting black shirt beneath that. His slacks were slightly loose. Everything was dark, it really brought out his serious and imposing figure.

"Your father has told me so much about you," his voice was expressionless.

"Yeah," she muttered, trying to not stare at his glasses too much, "dad, what's going on?"

"Well, Albert has been taking care of me for a while now," her father coughed a bit. She moved around to him and gently helped to move him up the bed. Albert Wesker watched with interest as the girl stared at her father with worry.

He had expected a ditzy blonde who could not wait for her father to perish. After all, when the sick man died it would ultimately mean that she would inherit everything. Including the apartment she now lived in.

Birkin continued, "it's come to a point where there is nothing else to do. Sherry don't look at me like that," he rasped, "you know that this has been coming. I just needed to have you both here, because I am going to ask something of you Sherry."

"Dad-

"Please, listen to me," he pleaded. She pressed her lips firmly together and nodded, trying to control the shaking of her hands, "when I pass away, I want you to move in with Mr. Wesker and his son. I know that he would take care of you. And I know you hardly know him but the two of you can get to know one another—

"Dad, please I can be on my own, I don't have to live with someone I don't know," she looked to the impassive man, "no offense."

"There is none taken," he rationalized, "but it would make your father rest much easier-

"If I were staying with someone I did not know? I can live on my own dad, I'm responsible enough," Sherry ran her hand through her hair, "I can't believe I'm even having this conversation as if you were gone already."

"Sherry, I know you can live on your own. I understand that," he coughed lightly, "but I would be much happier if you would just let yourself be taken care of for once. You are always trying to-

"No, dad please," she shook her head, then looked up at the expressionless man, "thank you. But I am not living with someone I don't know," her eyes went to her father, "don't make me do this dad please-

"Okay Sherry," he smiled gently, trying to reassure her, he could see the quickening of her breathing, warning him that she was near an edge, "you don't have to. It was just an idea."

She nodded and stood, "I'm going to go make you something to eat dad, scrambled eggs?" He nodded, quickly her eyes scanned to Albert Wesker, "would you like something Mr. Wesker?"

"No, thank you."

She nodded and strode out of the room.

_What a weird guy... he's kind of handsome though, _she mused as she went to the kitchen. She felt as if though his stare was burning through her back as she left the room. She imagined that his eyes were green, or maybe blue... but probably green. _That guy has a son? _he seemed awfully cold to her, she could not imagine that had another side of him, a side that drew a woman's attention to him. He was just... weird and imposing.

When she returned to the room she found Albert Wesker checking her father's pulse. She removed her eyes from him before he could notice her staring and set the plate on the table beside her father. He smiled warmly at her and watched her as she left the room.

"How is your son?" He asked his old lab partner. Albert Wesker released a smirk at the question.

"He is the same as he has always been. Self absorbed."

"The same as you," Birkin laughed and reached for the plate. When he winced Albert Wesker blurred and ignored Birkins stare, "I will never get used to that," he coughed slightly as Wesker handed him the plate, "have you analyzed his blood yet?"

"Yes," Albert nodded and stared at his friend without expression, "he does carry the same virus that has given me these abilities. He is stronger than most average individuals although he is not aware of it yet. He retains information better than most. He would be exactly like me if She..." he did not finish the statement.

Birkin stared at him with sadness, "if she had decided to accept the virus into her system. You know that she would not have wanted that. She wanted him to retain some aspect of humanity in him. If he were to be like you.. completely," Birkin shook his head, "she felt that he would have been power hungry."

Albert did not respond to that and thought of Jake when he was a young boy. He could remember the young boy running violently after his father when he came home from work. His toothy grin, his strange colored hair and his mothers blue eyes. The boy had a strong grip even when he was young. He would latch onto Wesker with an unusual strength. It was almost impossible to get him off without risking injury. Wesker simply dealt with it and walked with the boy wrapped around his long legs.

"He still fights?" Birkin asked.

"I do not know. I do not care. He does launch himself into a fight without being provoked. I have taught my son that he ought to defend himself. If someone is injured because of it then I do not care to reprimand him for defending his life."

Birkin bit his lip, "do you think that when I die, Sherry and Jake will get along? We have to find a way to get her to live with you Wesker. She does not remember you but I know you remember her. You were like her uncle. Do you remember how she would cry when you let go of her?"

Wesker nodded, he did remember that. Sherry Birkin would weep if she was not in the arms of her father of himself. He preferred to not hold her, it was uncomfortable to hold something so small, "I remember. And I do not know that Jake and Sherry will get along. But they are mature enough to be cordial." _My son will most likely want to do horrible things with your daughter, _he thought. _I will make it a point to speak to him if it should come to the girl moving in with us. _

**…**

"Where were you?" Jake asked his father as he strode through the door. He was eating takeout, again. Albert looked to his son without emotion, "haven't seen you in… two days." Jake shrugged and shoved a mouthful of Dominican rice in his face, "it's been a while."

"I was seeing a friend. Getting things in order for him, then I went to the lab for a bit," Wesker drew nearer to his son and sat on the couch stiffly, "his life is coming to a close. It is only a matter of time before he dies."

Jake chewed, "you have a friend?"

Albert smirked the slightest bit and nodded once, "he has a daughter."

"This is the same guy that wants his girl to come live here?"

"Yes. But she is opposed to the idea. She seems stubborn, and yet very docile in nature."

"Is she cute?"

Albert's eyes slid to his son, "if the girl ends up living here I expect you to be a responsible adult and not approach her after the death of her father."

Jake rolled his eyes, "I would never do that, I'm not a fucking moron."

"I would hope not." Albert stood from where he sat, "how are your friends?"

Jake thought about Sherry first, and then decided to answer smartly and vaguely, "they're all good. Chris decided he wants to go to the army, Sheva's not too happy about it but she's not fighting him on it. At this point she's just trying to spend as much time with him as possible."

Albert did not respond to that.

His father, the workaholic, was a hardass. Often Jake Muller found himself wondering if his father ever did anything to relax. He did read, but still it would be somehow work related. The man hardly watched television, and he never listened to music.

"What do you plan to do after high school. Have you given college any thought?"

Jake rolled his eyes, "no thoughts. I don't want to be a scientist."

"You've shown great promise."

"I don't care, it's all easy to remember but that doesn't mean I give a fuck."

Albert's face did not change in expression, but Jake Muller could hear the strange undertone of impatience in his tone, "I think you need to take your future more seriously. You are graduating in a few months."

"I know that," Jake glared at the television, "I'll probably go undecided."

"You will make your decision about your future by the end of this month." His father's tone was final, he stood from where he sat and began making his way up the stairs, "I expect it of you."

**…**

The next day Jake Muller found himself stalking around the hallways with thoughts of Sherry. He had not texted her the night before, now it was Monday and he could hardly think straight. He needed to see her, and he could not tell why. His fathers comment was messing with his head, his mood had gone sour ever since the conversation. Now he needed to see her, he just knew that she was going to make him laugh in some way.

When he entered the gym, dressed and ready to go, he was instantly looking for the short blonde. He sat by the bleachers, his eyes darkened as people filtered out of the girls locker room but he caught no sight of her.

_What the fuck?_

She was not in class that day. He hoped quietly that nothing had happened to her.

That entire gym period he felt as if thought time were teasing him. He needed to get to his phone. Or at least talk to Sheva, if anyone knew something it was Sheva, _but damn, I hope she's alright. _

When the class ended he waited for Chris by the gym door, he came walking with a grin on his face and laughing at something Billy was saying. He didn't care to find out what it was, instead he just walked alongside them silently.

When they reached the lunchroom his eyes darted towards the back of the lunchroom quickly. Once there he locked eyes with Sheva's worried gaze on Sherry who was saying something. From the way her lips moved he could tell it was more like mumbling.

The closer they came the more Sheva stared at them with a deep set frown, Jake's curiosity deepened, and when he finally reached the table he didn't even bother to roll his eyes at how Chris tried to make out with Sheva in the middle of the cafeteria. His eyes were on the short blonde who slid a smile onto her face and greeted them all.

The entire lunch period passed with an awkward silence from Jake and Sherry. Chris, Sheva, and Billy kept the conversations going. Jake couldn't stop staring at her the whole time. She looked like if she had not slept. And she nibbled on her sandwich awkwardly without ever taking a real bite. Even her water bottle did not change its volume of water. She sipped on it the entire lunch period without it really changing.

By the time lunch period was done Jake found himself more annoyed than ever. Sheva walked beside Chris and Billy following after them, Jake stayed rooted to his seat as Sherry stood slowly and shakily began the process of wrapping her sandwich back in its aluminum foil.

"Why weren't you in gym?" His tone came out much harsher then he had intended. He noticed her frown a little and then she looked up to him.

"I just didn't feel like being there," Sherry looked down from the intensity of Jake Muller's stare and back to her inoffensive sandwich. She hated that he was staring at her like that, like if she had to warn him or something before not showing up to a class.

"What was so bad that you couldn't have come to class?" He could hear how unreasonable he sounded but it didn't stop him. Slowly he stood from where he was, her eyes followed him as he fisted his hands against the table and put his weight on them.

"That's not your business Jake. I don't feel comfortable discussing that with you."

His face became impassive. She shivered silently and hurriedly threw her backpack on. He was intimidating with his posture. She could see the muscle pushing against the fitting shirt he wore. Silently she began walking away from him.

_Where the hell does she think that she's going? _ Jake followed after her with seven easy steps and caught up to her in no time, she looked to him with a delicate frown, he smirked at her, "you're annoyed at me."

"I'm not annoyed at you," she said solemnly, "it's not about you. It's just… private," she sighed heavily.

"Someone bothering you?" His tone became harsh, "is it Steve?"

"What, no!" She laughed, he raised a brow at the way her eyes twinkled at him, "you're nuts Jake. It's just family stuff."

He frowned then and shoved his hands in his pockets. He knew what was going to happen now, but he couldn't stop himself from saying it, "if you ever need to talk to someone… I'm here.. you know, for you to talk and shit," he scolded himself mentally for the last part as she blinked at him, _Shit? Talk, and shit? What the fuck is the matter with me. I'm such a god damn idiot. _

"Thank you," she whispered quietly, "that means a lot. I will keep that in mind." She stopped walking in the middle of the hallway, "I was thinking about what you told me last time." He gave her a confused stare, "about.. the date," he raised a brow and nodded, "I'd like that."

_Oh shit, _he struggled to keep the smirk out of his face but failed, "that's good."

"But just to be clear it's a date," her eyes became very serious, "it's not making anything change between us. We're just… getting to know one another better."

"Yeah, of course," he shrugged, _don't start smiling like a moron, _"I'll call you later to.. .work out dates."

"Perfect," she smiled genuinely for the first time that day and waved as she headed off to her class.

"Sherry!" He called after her, she turned and found him smirking at her cockily, "don't forget, I'm giving you a ride home."

"See you," she waved and headed to class, beaming foolishly.

**…**

That night Jake paced his room nervously. He had given Sherry a ride home only a few hours ago and found himself interested in talking to her some more. He did promise to call her to work something out.

_I can't believe I'm taking her out on a date. Jesus I never take people out on dates, _he stared at the clock with nerves. It was 8:22. It was appropriate to call at this time, right? He couldn't be sure, but he didn't care anymore. He had been nervously watching the clock for the last fifteen minutes and he wouldn't be able to hold out for another five.

He looked up her number hurriedly and dialed it instantly. He waited impatiently as it rang.

Just as it was about to ring a fifth time she picked up, he could hear music in the background and for a moment thought that she might be out somewhere without anyone to watch her back, but as it began to get lower he assumed she was in her house.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's Jake," he started and sat back onto his mattress heavily, "what's up?"

"Just… dancing around," she mumbled, "badly."

He imagined Sherry swaying her hips left and right to music and smirked, "I'm sure you dance fine."

She rolled her eyes with a smile, "what's up with you?"

"Nothing, I've been eating and watching TV," _more like pacing thinking of this conversation right now, _he lied, "so this weekend I thought I should take you to Dust."

"Dust?" Sherry frowned, and butterflies fluttered in her stomach, _I'm going on a date with Jake Muller, what have I gotten myself into? _"is that a restaurant?"

"Yeah," he chuckled, "what kind of restaurant is named Dust right? Doesn't make me particularly hungry. But whatever, it's a nice place."

"Casual or formal?" She worried and looked through her closet, she didn't really have anything formal.

"Sherry wear whatever you want," he rolled his eyes, "but it's an Italian place. You like Italian right?"

"Yeah," she grinned and spotted a nice skirt, "Italian's my favorite, I think I know what I'm going to wear." She paused, "wait is this going to be on your motorcycle?"

Jake thought for a moment, "no, I'll borrow my dad's car."

"Oh, okay, I was worried."

"Why?" His tone became curious as he threw himself down to the bed and stared at the ceiling.

"Well," she bit her lip, "I'm going to wear a skirt."

_So I'll finally get to see those legs, _he smirked, "awesome. So Saturday I'll pick you up at eight. That okay?"

"That's perfect," she agreed, "I can't wait. Uh, I have to get going Jake so I'll text you later okay?"

"Sure thing, supergirl."

She smiled, "Bye Ketchup."

And just like that the conversation was over.

Jake stared at his ceiling with a grin spreading across his face. At the same time Sherry jumped around her room with excitement boiling in her stomach.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" She cried out with excitement and ran to her father's room happily. When she entered she found her father reading, "Dad guess what!"

He looked up to her with shock, she was excited about something but he could not imagine what it was, "what is it honey?"

"I've got a date!" Her grin almost hurt her cheeks, "I've got a date and we're going out on Saturday," she beamed, "I won't be back late. I am going to ask Jill if she can stay with you for two hours or so."

He frowned slightly, "honey, who is this date with?"

"Jake Muller," she grinned, "he's really nice." _Well, not really, but he's nice to me. _

Her father's eyes narrowed, "what did you just say?"

Sherry's smiled faltered slightly, "Jake Muller…" She noticed how her father's hands trembled and he set the book down on his lap as if it were too heavy for his hands, "dad?"

"Absolutely not!"

* * *

**:o Papa Birkin is not too happy. Let's see why that is shall we? **

**So review darlings! Thank you so much for those of you who have reviewed, :) I read them all with so much excitement that it's almost embarrassing haha!**


	14. Jokes

**Chapter XIV**

"Absolutely not!" William Birkin's eyes bulged outwards towards her, "I don't want to hear of you being anywhere _near_ that boy unless it's in school!"

Sherry's jaw went slack with shock. She had not seen her father so upset in a very long time. She could hardly speak or think as he glared at her. She sucked in a deep breath and shook her head with confusion, "but why?"

"Because I said so," he forced out, "that boy is nothing but bad news."

"Are you kidding me?" she was appalled, "you don't even know him-

"I know enough," his eyes narrowed at her and his hands trembled. Just the thought of that boy with his daughter made him feel like he was losing his sanity.

"How would you know anything about him dad? You're just being judgmental, he's nice to me, and he's respectful," she was struggling to maintain control of her voice, but her throat was tightening and wanting nothing more than to begin shouting.

"He is a hooligan who wants to use you for your body and nothing more."

"How would you know? You don't know him," her voice was shaky, she was going to lose it, "he's very nice dad. Where would you have heard anything about him anyway?"

"Sherry," William pinched the bridge of his nose, "that boy is a deviant," she rolled her eyes and ran a hand through her hair; she couldn't believe that he was being like this. Yes, he had heard something about Jake. That much was clear. But she couldn't stand it anyway, "you're not going out with that boy, you two are completely different. Call him and tell him the date is off. You're not going anywhere."

"I can't believe you," her incredulity was obvious as she blinked at him. Hoping, wishing, that he was going to burst into a fit of laughter and tell her that he was kidding. But the longer she stared the more serious his expression became. The knitting between his brows told her everything she had to know. He was very serious, "dad…" her voice dropped to a whisper, "please… I like him-

"I don't care. Find someone that is worthy of you, not that boy. Now, I have to read this book Sherry. You know what you need to do. Goodnight."

Astonishment, no other expression lay on her face but that one. William returned to the book in his lap and struggled to concentrate. He could feel her gaze on him. She would understand at some point. Maybe when he was gone.

Sherry shut the door to the bedroom and moved to her own room in a hurry. There was an anger building inside of her. An urge to defy her father and do nothing, but she couldn't do that to him. He was in a weak condition. He was not well; she wouldn't be able to take it if something happened to him because she was being stubborn. What if he had a heart attack out of anger? No, she couldn't risk it.

She sat on her bed and stared at the phone beside her with worry.

_What do I say to him? _Sherry hung her head, _would he hate me more if I did it in person? Maybe I should do it after he drops me off? No, no, then it'll look like I was using him to get a ride home. But if I do it on the phone that's probably worse… I'll do it in school, yeah, right after school I'll just tell him. _

And with that Sherry lay her head on her pillow and struggled to sleep.

**…**

Sherry was acting strange. All period she had been laughing shakily and grinning a bit too casually. Her eyes would dart around as if she didn't know what the hell to stare at, and it was annoying him.

Ever since she walked into the gym she had this weird tick in her hands, she kept messing around with her fingers and it was annoying him, especially because he knew it had to be a nervous habit.

"You okay?" He asked her as she stared distantly towards the basketball hoop.

"Yeah, I'm okay, why?" She looked to him nervously.

"Well it looks like your fingers are having seizures," he pointed out. She looked down at how she drummed her fingers against the bleachers at irregular intervals, she clenched her hands tightly.

"I'm just thinking, that's all," she smiled reassuringly at him. He narrowed his eyes but accepted this.

The rest of the class was spent on strange conversations. He learned that when Sherry was so obviously nervous about something she strained to be funny.

"Want to hear a joke?" she had told him as the teacher dismissed them, he nodded, smirking and shoving his hands into his pockets. She stared up at him with a glitter in her eyes, "what did sushi 'A' say to Sushi 'B'?"

He raised a brow.

Sherry grinned, "Wasabi. Get it?"

"Oh God," he shook his head, frowning as she laughed, "That was so bad."

"That was funny!" she giggled and skipped off to the locker room. He chuckled and went to change as well. When he came out of the locker room Chris was already walking towards him, laughing so hard that teachers were shutting their doors.

"Oh man, Jake you gotta' hear this," Chris rubbed a tear away as he came to Jake's side, "Sheva texted me this joke that Sherry just told her."

"Wasabi?"

Chris frowned, "no. You'll see when we get there."

Jake nodded.

When they entered the lunchroom they found Sheva staring at Sherry with amusement as the blonde grinned and laughed. Jake smiled, _she thinks she's so funny. _Billy suddenly appeared beside Jake and nodded in greeting.

"Hey," Sheva grinned at them all and waved, Chris went to kiss her and got a warning look from Sheva before he got too carried away, and Jake rolled his eyes and stared at Sherry who was snickering like a fool.

"More jokes?" He guessed.

"Tell him the one you told me," Chris smirked, "this is so good."

"Okay, what says 'Oh, oh, oh'?"

_Girls while I fuck them, _Jake shrugged and kept his retort inside.

"Santa walking backwards."

Billy laughed and spit water onto the table. Sheva grimaced and Sherry laughed, Jake raised a brow with an open mouthed smirk.

"You think you're _so_ funny," he observed, she nodded and unwrapped her sandwich then she took a bite into it, "I bet I can make you all laugh."

"No you can't," Sherry and Sheva challenged at once.

"Jake, hit them with the good stuff," Chris stated seriously. Jake stared at Chris.

"Relax, this isn't war," he warned his very, competitive friend.

"Take them down, fast and hard," Chris responded.

Sheva's eyes widened and she burst into a fit of giggles, Jake looked at her with confusion, "do you seriously plan on saying that in the middle of combat or something Chris?" He asked, "it sounds like you're giving me sex tips or something."

"God knows you need 'em, girls coming out with bruises and shit," Chris mumbled and looked off, crossing his arms.

Jake rolled his eyes and thought for a joke, "Three guys go to a ski lodge, and there aren't enough rooms, so they have to share a bed. In the middle of the night, the guy on the right wakes up and says, "I had this wild, vivid dream of getting a hand job!" The guy on the left wakes up, and weirdly, he had the same dream. Then the guy in the middle wakes up and says, "That's funny, I dreamed I was skiing."

"Oh fuck!" Chris spluttered water out just as Billy's head dropped to the table with laughter. Sheva snickered despite herself and Sherry stared at Jake with confusion.

"What? Why… I don't get it."

Jake grinned devilishly at her as she stared at him with confusion. His eyes looked alight with humor, "he was giving them hand jobs –

"Oh!" She squeaked and blushed as Chris and Billy laughed at her. Jake bit his lip and looked away. He had this urge to just jump over the table and grab her head and kiss her, _until she bruises, _he added, _I wonder if she's ever even been kissed, _he tried to imagine her with someone but found it almost impossible. The vision would change to him attacking the other person.

"Okay I've got one," Chris grinned, Sheva groaned.

"Chris, you know that your jokes aren't really good right?" She teased softly; he glared at her and continued.

"Knock, knock."

"Who's there?" Sheva answered with a grumble.

"Daisy."

"Daisy who?"

"Daisy me rollin', they hatin'."

"Oh wow!" Billy and Sherry burst into wild fits of laughter, Jake chuckled despite himself and Sheva shook her head at Chris with an astounded grin.

The rest of the lunch period passed this way, Jake had the dirty jokes, Sherry stuck to cheesy humor, Chris was just odd, Sheva shook her head at their sense of humor, and Billy had the entire table covered in his drink by the time the lunch period was over.

When school was over Jake walked out of the school with a dark expression on his face. No one knew however that there was excitement pooling at his stomach at the knowledge that this weekend he would have Sherry to himself. He'd be able to talk to her and see what she's like when their friends weren't around.

As he stalked over to the motorcycle he noticed Excella standing there, touching the leather seats with a long manicured fingernail. Her eyes cast their way over to him and she smiled, her red lips became coy and her stare dark and lustful.

"What do you want?" He asked as he approached the bike and stopped in front of her. She smirked at him.

Excella wore a skirt that was much too short for her. To say that she was unattractive would be a lie, and Jake knew it. She was in fact very attractive. But he just didn't care for it. If she leaned just the right way he swore that her panties would flash, the black miniskirt wasn't really doing her any favors.

"I wanted to talk to you," she leaned off the bike and placed one hand on her hip, leaning on one leg and swaying with boredom, "I see that you are hanging around that Sherry Birkin girl all the time now."

"And?" His eyes narrowed.

"Well I just wanted to know if you're dating her or something," her tone became defensive, "that would look very bad."

"Really," his mouth twisted with annoyance, "and how would that look bad?"

"Well," she looked amused and looked behind him before returning her eyes to him and running her red fingernail along the collar of his shirt, "I was the last one to fuck you," she lowered her voice very carefully and looked up at him with a knowing gaze, "can you just imagine what they would say about you and I if you were caught with that girl? She looks like a fucking child Jake. You're downgrading."

"Get the hell away from me," he threw her hand away from him, "you were a lame fuck anyway," he spit angrily. She smirked.

"We'll see about that when you coming running back to my house." With that she sashayed away.

Jake looked away from her towards the entrance of the school and noticed Sherry. She was staring at them both form a distance with a slight frown and a confused stare.

Slowly Sherry made her way towards him. He was leaning against the bike with one ankle crossed over the other. His eyes were on her. A shiver threatened to roll up her spine.

"Hey," she murmured quietly, the image of Excella touching him flashed through her head.

"Hey, you ready to go?" He leaned off of the bike and stared down at her. She was staring at her hands nervously, "got anymore jokes for me?" He smirked.

"Yeah," she murmured awkwardly, "why did the motorcycle stop moving?" When he waited she answered, "It was two-tired." Jake rolled his eyes and but found himself nonetheless amused at her stupid joke. He extended his arms out to her, ready to pick her up, but she stepped back and raised her gaze up to him, "Jake I have bad news."

_Well, this just took a serious turn, _he thought and dropped his hands to his side, "what is it?"

"I can't go out with you this weekend," she nervously removed her gaze from him and fidgeted with her thumbs, "I'm really sorry. It's just that.. .I can't-

"What?" His eyes flashed at her and he reminded himself to keep control of his temper. _She doesn't have to go out with me. I've got no right to react like if she's just kicked me in the balls, but damn she might as well. _He crossed his arms as she looked up at him, "why?"

"I can't explain I just don't think it's a good idea."

"Did I do something?" His eyes were narrowing and he could see the growing nervousness on her face.

"What? No, no, Jake I just think that you and I are very different and it's best if we just don't ruin our friendship, okay? Can we just leave it at that and not let this get all weird?" She was pleading with him, it was all in her face and body posture. She was squirming as if she had a bad stomach ache, "I just—

"Fine," there was anger boiling in his chest. _What fucking answer is that? 'I just don't think it's a good idea?' God damn it something else is going on, she's not telling me. _"Whatever, it's not a big deal. I don't care," he mounted the bike and she felt her entire body deflate of air.

"I'm sorry… I really did want to-

"Save it," he snapped at her, his eyes narrowed, "I don't need a fucking pity party."

Sherry blinked with shock, "no. Jake I wasn't trying to-

"Do you think I really give that much of a shit about a stupid little hang out? Jesus Sherry," he laughed at her even though he could hear the regret already making its way over to him, "you and I can be friends it's no big deal. I'm already over it. Now get on so I could give you a ride home."

She trembled where she stood. Then swallowed the lump in her throat, she managed a short and jerky shake of her head. He scowled, "I'll walk. It's no big deal, I need to stop at the store and get a few things anyway, bye Jake, thanks for being so understanding," she threw in there just to dig him just a bit.

"I'll drop you off at the store," he reasoned, frowning at her rejection, _that's twice now._

"No, it's fine," she shook her head and began walking away from him, "bye!"

"Sherry!" He called out with frustration.

She waved with a fake smile and hurriedly made her way home. Jake stared with annoyance and let the motorcycle come to life beneath him. _Fine, walk home, _he grunted mentally and made his way out of the parking lot.

It wasn't until she got through the front door that she took in a deep breath. She had been taking short little pants the entire way home. Her lungs appreciated the oxygen.

Quietly Sherry approached her dad's room, when she pushed the door open she found him reading, he looked up and stared at her with surprise, "how was school?"

"It was fine," she forced out, "I spoke to Jake. I cancelled."

He nodded, "good."

She nodded once and bit her tongue against a snarky remark before she shut the door. As she looked for something to eat she turned on the TV and thought of Jake.

She was certain Excella had seen her. She had looked right at her as she ran her hands on Jake, and he had _let_ her. _He's not my boyfriend, _Sherry reminded herself, knowing that her jealousy was irrational, _but why didn't he push her away? _She supposed that that wouldn't have been very kind of Jake to do. She shrugged and plopped onto the couch with a glass of Pepsi.

_Maybe dad is right, he and I are just too different… whatever. Jake didn't care that much anyway, he said it himself._

She tried to convince herself that this didn't hurt her, and that it wouldn't affect her attitude towards him for the coming days.

* * *

***Hides from readers as they attack her***

**Review ? :) **


	15. 5 X 2

**Chapter XV**

Sherry could hardly concentrate as she took her first quiz. All the words were blurring together. And the questions stopped making sense. She forced herself to read them, over and over in a poor attempt to understand the question. But the more she read them the more confused she became. So she just filled in anything.

Her father was on her mind. And even though she knew that Jill was taking care of him and that everything was probably fine it didn't mean that Jill could help it if her if he died. And that was just terrifying.

In the last five minutes of class she started scribbling any old answers in.

Sherry moved through her classes without enthusiasm. She dreaded gym, the way she had left things with Jake didn't sit okay with her. And she was sure it didn't sit okay with him either.

When gym rolled around Sherry changed out of her clothing slowly. Her limbs weren't cooperating with her today.

_Let's just hope I don't bump into Excella and wind up with a cold shower again. _

Her fingers trembled as she stepped out to the gym. She purposely waited until the majority of the girls started walking out so that she could do her best to blend into the crowd. But Jake couldn't be too mad at her right? After all he had offered her a ride home, he couldn't be that angry… right?

When Sherry allowed her gaze to come up from her feet she made her way to an empty spot on the bleachers. She did know if Jake was there yet, and she really hoped he wasn't. It would be awkward to try to ignore his presence, especially when he was _so_ hard to ignore.

Occasionally her eyes would roam against her will, and it wasn't until the last few minutes of class that she caught sight of a tall male with Jake build stalking into the locker room. Nervously she bit her lip and moved to the girls locker room to get dressed. She was certain it was him

**…**

He had watched her the entire gym class. Admittedly, he was hoping that she'd look at him, or sense him staring at her. But she seemed trapped in her own little world and hardly looked up at all. He was expecting her to bump into something at some point, but she didn't.

"Chris," he greeted the brawny male with a pound on the fist and then the same to Billy.

"Is Sherry okay?" Chris asked him as they moved to the lunchroom.

"Why should I know?" Just the mention of her made him annoyed, the fact that she had turned him down.

No one turned him down.

"Well Sheva was telling me that she's been acting off all day, apparently in first period she hardly paid attention and in the last few seconds of class she just filled in random shit on her test. Seems out of character don't you think?"

"Out of character?" Jake frowned, "we hardly know her. How the hell should we know? Maybe she's like that all the time."

But he knew she wasn't like that. He had spoken to her enough to know that she took school seriously, and that she was smart. Hell, she was probably an _A_ student. And while it worried him that she was not taking her test seriously, it made him curious. He wasn't dumb, he knew it had to be something that was _really_ bugging her. And strangely enough, he hoped it was exactly what was bugging him. _I hope she is feeling angry at herself._

"Do you think you can ask her?" Billy asked Jake with a wary stare, "you two seem to talk a lot."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

They pushed past the lunchroom doors and Jake tried to not instantly look for her, so he kept his eyes on Billy who was to Chris's other side, "well," Billy explained quickly, "she talks to you more than she talks to Chris and me. And girls have their 'girl code' shit so Sheva won't tell us."

"Do you think Sheva knows?" Jake wondered as they drew nearer, Billy shrugged and that was the end of that. The girls were both in hearing distance now.

"Hey Jake, Billy, Chris," Sheva grinned at them all, Chris pecked her quickly on the mouth and Jake finally allowed his gaze to travel to her.

She looked up at him from where she sat with a shy smile; he sensed the waves of anxiety rolling off of her.

"Hi guys," she mumbled, greeting him as indirectly as possible and managing an awkward wave at all of them, Billy and Chris greeted her directly but Jake said nothing, he sat in front of her with a serious expression and leaned back in his chair. Openly watching her with a scrutinized gaze. She was definitely upset, that much he could tell.

She was fidgeting awkwardly with an end of her hair, and he noticed how her smile looked heavy.

_Literally_, it was like she was struggling to keep it up.

Her hands trembled plainly even as she brought the sandwich to her mouth, and when she bit into it it looked as if she wasn't even tasting it.

"I was thinking we should go out today?" Sheva told Chris and the guys, they looked to her with confusion, "for lunch, I think it'd be nice to get some air. What do you guys think?"

"Well… I guess that'd be good, I'm not hungry anyway so let's just walk around," Chris nodded in agreement, "you guys in?"

They all nodded, and stood.

Billy, Jake and Chris walked behind Sheva and Sherry who lead the way. Sheva could tell there was something wrong with Sherry and wanted to get some fresh air, and hopefully gain enough distance between her and the boys to where they'd be able to talk.

As they all walked Sheva sneakily managed to get just out of hearing distance with Sherry. Jakenoticed and glared at the back of their heads. Something was going on.

"Sherry, can I ask you something?" Sheva asked with trepidation, Sherry nodded. She knew what was coming; she was going to ask why she was being so weird, "are you okay?"

_Well, are you okay Sherry? _A voice within her asked. Her insides twisted at the question. Every time she heard it, or thought it, it seemed that another part of her cracked under the pressure of holding up the lie. Sometimes – she just wanted to stop and shout No, "I'm fine Sheva-

"Okay, let's try this again," Sheva smiled patiently, the sun made her brown eyes shine crimson, and Sherry was stunned for a moment at how pleasant she looked when she smiled at her. She was so… sincerely caring. It baffled Sherry, after all, Sheva really didn't know her!

_She's making an attempt at least…_

"Are you okay?" She repeated with the same gracious smile.

Sherry bit her lip quietly and looked at Sheva as they turned a corner.

Sheva read her expression easily, "what is it?"

"I can't talk about it… if I talk about it I'll just start crying," Sherry shook her head, "I can't… I can't do that I don't want to look weak."

"Weak?" Sheva frowned at her, the boys had just turned the corner, "how are you weak Sherry?"

"I'm just weak Sheva there's nothing else to it," the words began to spill out of her mouth before she could stop it, "I'm soft, I let people walk all over me and I just take it and take it."

"And you think that makes you weak? Just because people may handle things differently it doesn't mean that you are weak, Sherry," Sheva frowned disapprovingly at the small female at her side, "just because I snap to kick and punches and you would rather walk away that doesn't make you weak."

"I wish I could agree."

"Sherry, clearly you're dealing with something that's major and as much as I'd like to know what it is I'm not going to push you to tell me something you aren't comfortable saying, that is just… not my place. But I'll tell you something," Sheva looked behind her to check where the guys were and found them very far back. She smirked when she noticed Jake and Billy angrily scolding Chris as he watched a car drive by, admiring it. Sheva turned back to Sherry, "my parents and I don't get along. They don't like Chris."

"Woah, what? Why?" Sherry couldn't imagine someone not liking Chris.

"Well, Chris kind of… pursued me out of a life that they had planned for me," she shrugged, "my parents are very, very traditional. But first you should probably understand that my birth parents died in Africa when I was very young. I hardly remember them, but I do know that the reason they died is because they were not traditional. I was adopted by a new family from Africa who came here. They expect me to marry within my own race, and become a housewife to the man of their choosing, they want me to not go to college and basically just… start popping out babies. But when I met Chris that all changed."

'That's crazy Sheva," Sherry blinked in horror, "an arranged marriage?"

Sheva nodded, "when I met Chris I didn't think it was going to go anywhere. I mean, he was just a goofball to me but after really getting to know him I realized there's so much more to him than that. I mean…" she sighed heavily and ran a hand through her hair, "I know that people say things like 'he gets me' and it's cheesy or whatever. But he seriously _gets_ me. I just couldn't let him go…" Sheva blinked and looked behind her, "I'm going to tell you something… but you have to promise me not to tell anyone Sherry. I'm serious you can't tell Chris. Please don't freak out."

Now Sherry felt her heart stuttering, she nodded quickly.

"My parents kicked me out Sherry… I'm living on the street."

**…**

"Jake, I've known you for a long time now," Billy started.

Chris continued, "and we know when something is up with you.."

"You two are fucking morons," Jake huffed at their dramatic way of asking 'what's wrong with you?'

"So then spill, what is it?" Chris crossed his arms and stepped in Jake's path, "I'm not Sheva, I'm not going to respect your fucking need for privacy. You're always in my business so now it's my turn. What the fuck is up with you? You've been acting like more of an asshole than usual."

"Chris I'm going to put you on your ass in three seconds if you don't get out of my way." Jake threatened.

Chris grinned, "I'm up for the challenge."

Jake knew that he couldn't really knock Chris down… and if he did it would take a lot of effort. Jake and Chris have had physical confrontations. And if Chris was ever put on the ground it was because he took Jake down in the first place. But that was such a long time ago… maybe now…

"I asked Sherry out," he muttered. Billy's eyes bulged and Chris's mouth went slack, "she turned me down yesterday, wouldn't explain why and then just… walked off like if I had-

"What did you say?" Billy glared.

"What the hell do you mean what did I say?" Jake's hands balled into fists.

"When you get pissed you start saying shit that hurts people's feelings, what did you say?" Chris glared at him.

Jake thought about his words to her for a moment and then shrugged, "nothing… I just told her that it didn't really matter to me anyway—

"You fucking idiot," Billy rolled his eyes and Chris counted to ten. It wouldn't do him any favors to have bruised knuckles today, "is that why she's so weird right now? You fucking told her you don't care?"

"Well what is the big deal," Jake spoke angrily, "she said yes at first, and then said no. Obviously it doesn't matter to her either so why the hell shouldn't I –

"Because you don't know why she said no, do you?"

"She said that we were too different and that we should just be friends-

"And then you go and tell her that you don't care? Of course that's going to hurt," Chris rolled his eyes, "there's something else obviously going on. It's not that simple Jake, it doesn't make sense. Why would she say yes and then say no?"

"Because maybe she changed her mind," Jake shrugged.

"Or maybe, something else is going on," Chris insisted and then looked to where Sherry and Sheva were off in the distance, "something else is definitely going on."

**…**

"Sheva why haven't you told Chris? Where does he think you live?"

"There's this couple that took me in. But I don't like to go over there much – I don't want them to think I'm using them or something, and that's also why I don't live with Chris. I mean don't worry," she smiled at Sherry, "I'm perfectly safe. There's a shelter not far from here—

"Jesus Christ Sheva," Sherry blinked, "you can't do this to yourself. No, no, no, listen you have to come stay with me-

"Sherry no-

"Please, Sheva?" She pleaded with her. The thought of her spending another moment in the streets terrified her, "listen I have the space and if you want you can do some chores around the house, lord knows I need the help."

Sheva shook her head adamantly, "I can't do that."

Sherry closed her eyes and counted to ten, "Sheva, please. I'll… I'll explain everything when I get home. But you have to come stay with me, even if just for a week. I can't live with myself knowing that you're like this. Am I the only person you've told?"

Sheva swallowed and nodded her head.

"Listen; come home with me today after school, okay? Where do you keep your stuff?"

"In my locker, it's just a little bag of clothes…"

"Okay, that's fine, I need to go shopping so you can come with me, okay?"

Sheva felt tears spring to her eyes and she looked towards Chris, Billy and Jake. Billy and Chris were standing in front of Jake almost aggressively, "I can't accept this."

"Please, Sheva? Come with me?" She begged, "I'll – I'll ask my dad right now, okay?"

Sherry whipped out her phone and dialed her father's number. When she looked to Sheva she noticed her hands were trembling, she took hold of one and gave her a reassuring squeeze, Sheva wiped a tear and hid her face so that Sherry wouldn't see her crying.

"Hello?"

"Dad, hey, it's me," Sherry tried to sound like she wasn't on the verge of choking on her own anxiety.

"Is everything oaky Sherry?" he could hear the worry.

"Yeah, well.. no, not really but that's why I'm calling you," she cut to the chase, "I have a friend – and she really needs a place to stay. Please say yes?"

He knew what she was asking. And the timing couldn't have been more appropriate.

_Soon I will be gone, _he thought quietly as he listened to his daughter breathing evenly on the phone, _and Sherry will need someone here with her. She will not go with Albert… but perhaps this friend will keep her company. _

"Who's this friend?" He asked cautiously.

"Sheva Alomar, she's really nice. She's the girl that I told you about… she's my friend."

He thought for a long moment, "and why is she on the streets Sherry? Is she involved with any illegal activities?"

"No dad," she assured him with annoyance. Did he think she'd allow someone like that into their home? "she doesn't do anything like that. She doesn't even drink," she looked to Sheva.

"I'll have to meet her first to make sure she can stay. She can stay for the night since she needs it, but nothing is permanent," he said seriously.

"Thank you!" Sherry squealed, "I love you dad."

"I love you too Sherry," he breathed, "but remember that she only stays if I give her the green light."

"Bye!"

"Bye sweetheart."

Sherry hung up the phone and turned to Sheva.

"My dad said okay!" She squealed and jumped into the brunette's arms, "are you happy? I really don't want you to feel like you have to do this. And my dad wants to meet you first and make sure it's okay…"

Shea nodded quietly, "I'll meet him."

"Okay," Sherry smiled and then stared at her nervously, "and Chris can't know?"

"No." Sheva shook her head quickly, "Chris can't know. He'll freak out if he knows I've been kicked out. He'll be really angry Sherry."

"Don't worry, he won't know. It's not my place to tell him anyway. So today meet me afterschool at my locker okay? We'll walk over and then you can meet him."

Sheva nodded and quickly pulled Sherry into a hug. The shorter girl stiffened but then returned it.

"Thank you so much," Sheva whispered quietly, noticing that the boys were making their way over to them, "you really have no idea of how much this means to me."

"Sheva… but I don't get it. Why did you tell me that?"

Sheva sighed and pulled away from Sherry, "because I want you to confide in me," she stated firmly, "just like I told you something I really haven't told anyone I want you to feel comfortable telling me when something is wrong Sherry. You can't keep holding things in. You're my friend, and I am yours whenever you need one."

Sherry nodded, understanding just as Chris, Billy and Jake walked up to them. Chris frowned when he noticed the slightly pink coloring of the whites in Sheva's eyes.

Very discreetly he pulled her to the side as Billy, Jake and Sheva walked ahead.

"Are you okay?" He stared down at her with worry, "you look like you cried."

"What?" Sheva laughed, "no I got something in my eyes."

"Are you sure?" he didn't look convinced.

"I'm sure," she leaned up on her toes and gave him a kiss. When he leaned into her she swatted him playfully on the chest, "no."

"Ugh, Sheva you get me all riled up –

"A kiss gets you riled up Chris?" Sheva rolled her eyes and laughed as he glared at her, "I guess that's why I love you."

"Minx," he smirked and bent down, "get on my back, we'll never catch up to them with you on those heels." Sheva grinned and did as he said.

Up ahead Billy was on the phone with Rebecca, laughing at something. Jake looked down at Sherry and noticed that she was smiling a little. He took this as an opening.

"You look like you're feeling better."

Sherry blinked and looked to him with surprise; she hadn't even noticed that Billy and Jake had stopped talking. She was too busy daydreaming of all the fun things she and Sheva could do if they lived together. Stay up late, talk about nothing, endless Reality TV and enough pizza to make even Chris disgusted, "yeah, I'm feeling better."

He stuffed his hands into his pockets and hit the inside of his cheek, "'sorry."

"What was that?" She blinked with confusion, she hadn't heard him.

"I said, I'm sorry." He didn't meet her gaze, he stared out towards the end of the street, "about what I did." He didn't want her to be angry with him. He could hardly think of anything else. And it wasn't even the entire day! And yet it felt like _three._ He really couldn't take this shit.

"What did you do?" She asked.

"Yesterday… what I said," he mumbled with annoyance, hoping she'd stop wondering and just let him get through with this. It wasn't just a matter of wanting things to be okay again between them. He didn't even know if her less than happy mood was due to him, but if it was he had to make sure he corrected it. He _needed_ things to be okay between then, or at least he needed to make sure. It was annoying the hell out of him, that growing urgency.

"Oh, no worries, thanks for apologizing," she smiled at him, "and I'm sorry if I can't provide you an explanation, but it really isn't you Jake. Believe me."

He nodded once and was about to respond when he heard Chris running up to him, Sheva laughed on his back and Billy clicked off the phone and playfully shoved Chris, knowing he wouldn't sway even an inch. Sheva swatted Billy's head from Chris' back and Jake grinned as Sherry finally smiled, and it didn't look heavy this time.

_But I'll seriously fuck someone up if their making it hard for her to look like this all the time. _

It was only when Sherry was sitting in her last period class that she realized that Sheva was going to meet her father. Her very sick, pale, and dying father.

* * *

**Woo! I was not thinking to update tonight but couldn't leave you guys hanging. It's 1:51 So, I hope that you all review when you read this, damn my fingers are cramping haha and my wrists are sore. But I loved writing this chapter very much. :) SO I hope that you all enjoyed it as well. **

**So here you go! You found out some new things about Sheva, and you also found out a bit of insight into Jake's growing feeling for Sherry. Clearly Sherry is just handling a lot and is suffering from anxiety. Not so much because of Jake but because of her father. So let's hope Papa Birkin approves of Miss Alomar? What do you guys think of the fact that she's going to find out about the cause of Sherry's anxiety? Afterall, she's going to realize that Sherry's dad is dying O_o. Which is basically the realization that Sherry comes to, of course she knows that Sheva is gonig to meet her dad, but she's going to also realize that things are not okay in the Birkin household.**

**SO REVIEW if you enjoyed it, tell me what you're curious about. I have had a few people telling me that they like the Chris/Sheva dynamic and I've considered making like.. a ten chapter spin off perhaps of their relationship from before they met Sherry... or maybe just throwing it into this story with distinctive titles so that you all know that it is a 'prequel chapter' type of thing. Oh well. Idk yet, I'm still battling with the idea.**

**SO YEAH :) TELL ME WHAT YOU'D LIKE TO HEAR MORE ABOUT :) **


	16. Plans

**Chapter XVI**

Sherry entered the apartment very quietly; inside she could hear Jill speaking with her father about what he wanted to eat. Behind her Sheva shyly followed and stood awkwardly as Sherry led her towards her bedroom.

"This is beautiful," Sheva complimented meekly.

"Really? I disagree," Sherry took her bag and threw it onto the bed, "first things first. My dad's name is William."

"Got it," Sheva nodded and watched Sherry take off her shoes; she followed her lead and neatly placed them in the corner.

"Uh," Sherry didn't know how to begin, but she wouldn't let Sheva get caught off guard either. Nervously she ran a hand through her hair, "you will notice that my dad is… sick."

"Oh, that sucks," Sheva frowned, "what's he got? A cold? Fever?"

_Now wouldn't that be a godsend, _Sherry smiled sadly at Sheva. Her throat tightened, even after so many years the words were not easy to let out. It made her feel like if she was choking, "he's got cancer."

A poignant silence filled the room. Sheva's eyes widened with shock and Sherry lowered her own with dismay… "Your dad is… he's got cancer?"

"Yeah," Sherry mumbled quietly, "so when you see him try to not let it jar you too much."

"Sherry," Sheva was at a loss for words, "I'm so sorry I didn't know—

"I didn't expect you to," Sherry shrugged dismissively; "I didn't tell you .There is really no reason to apologize. None of this is your fault."

Sheva shuffled uncomfortably from where she stood and tried to find the proper way to ask her following question, "is… does your dad take treatment?"

"He did," Sherry nodded, "but nothing was working. He decided he wanted to live out his final days here in peace where he grew up."

"Final days?" Sheva blanched, "does that mean… Oh God Sherry, I'm so sorry."

Sherry nodded, "he doesn't have very long."

_Jesus, _Sheva thought as she watched Sherry fidget with her hands, _this is crazy. What about her mother? She can't deal with something like this alone. I can't imagine how… _

"And your mom? Where is she?" Sheva came to Sherry's side and politely sat beside her on the bed, noticing how Sherry wouldn't meet her gaze.

"She's dead, or at least, that's what my dad tells me."

"Oh God," Sheva tentatively reached out and took Sherry's hand in her own, gently she squeezed, "Sherry I'm so sorry."

"Don't be, I never knew her, there isn't anything to be sad about," Sherry lied and stood with a small smile, "come on, you should meet my dad. I'm sure he heard us coming in."

"Okay," Sheva agreed and stared at Sherry cautiously as she smiled nonchalantly. She couldn't imagine that the fact that her father was dying affected her so little. Inside, she imagined that Sherry was less then calm.

They moved past the modest living room, which Sheva admired briefly, before moving into the bedroom where Sherry's father was.

The first thing Sheva noticed, despite herself, was how gaunt and sickly the man looked on the large bed. His eyes were sunken and the color was gone from his lips. Blonde wispy strands of hair rested on his head.

"Hi dad," Sherry grinned brightly and kissed him on the cheek.

There was another woman in the room with sky blue eyes and blonde hair. It appeared to Sheva, that the woman's hair was dyed, but she wasn't sure. And she had a very sharp look about her, like if she knew something just by looking at people.

"Dad, Jill, this is Sheva Alomar. She's a friend from school, Sheva, this is my father William Birkin, and this is his nurse Jill Valentine," Sherry introduced them and Jill waved at Sheva warmly while carefully adjusting Sherry's father so that he was sitting up and staring directly at Sheva.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Birkin," Sheva greeted him and extended her hand.

"Likewise Miss Alomar," William rasped out gently and shook her hand feebly; trying to muster the strength he had when he was in a better state of health. Sheva hardly felt any pressure and was almost reluctant to release his hand for fear that it would drop like dead weight, "how are you?"

"I'm good, and you Mr. Birkin?"

"I am fine," he smiled gently, "Jill can you give us some privacy?"

The blonde woman nodded and smiled before excusing herself. Sheva shifted uncomfortably under the gaze of Sherry's father.

"So Sherry tells me that she is interested in having you live with us."

Sheva blinked at his cut-to-the-chase attitude but appreciated it, at least they wouldn't have to beat around the bush awkwardly, "yes, sir."

"And what do you think about that?" he asked with interest, his blue eyes peering at her carefully, "I know how overwhelming my daughter can be when she makes up her mind about something."

Sherry smirked slightly and took a seat beside her father.

"I don't want to impose," Sheva mumbled, "and if I cannot stay here it is totally understandable. However, I would like the opportunity to show you that I am trustworthy and despite my state of need I don't aim to take advantage of the kindness Sherry has shown me or yourself should you choose to let me stay."

"Well put," he complimented her and then tilted his head to the side, "do you drink?"

"No I do not," Sheva immediately stated.

"Drugs? Well, why do I bother with that," he rolled his eyes at himself as Sherry scowled at him, "if you did do drugs it's not like you'd admit to it anyway. But you don't look like the drug using type."

"I'm not," Sheva shrugged, "the most drugs I've taken are Advil's."

He chuckled at that and Sherry did too as Sheva bit her lip nervously, "and what about school, is it a priority for you?" He asked carefully, "I don't want to let someone who is going to waste around all day."

"School is very important to me," she told him carefully, not looking away.

William turned to look at his daughter carefully, then he looked back at Sheva, "and boyfriend?"

"I have a boyfriend," Sheva answered honestly; "his name is Chris Redfield. He goes to high school with Sherry and I… he's very nice."

"Super funny," Sherry added.

"I imagine that he would come to visit you wouldn't he?" William's stare became suspicious.

"I would go see him in his apartment if it would suit you to not have him here," Sheva immediately explained, "I don't want to invite people over if you don't want people here."

"Just for a time," he shrugged, "lets do this like a trial run. I don't want to say no to you, you seem like a nice girl. And I trust Sherry's judgment of you. So yes, you can stay; we'll see how it goes."

Sheva beamed brightly at him as Sherry squealed and kissed his cheek over and over, the man blushed slightly at his daughter's affection and Sheva couldn't help but run over and gently hug him. He smiled as Sheva thanked him over and over.

"Sheva come on! We have to get your stuff set up, this is going to be so fun," Sherry pulled the girl away from her father and started towing her towards the room. They moved past Jill who grinned at them both as they excitedly planned out how they were going to set up the room for Sheva's things.

**…**

He had to text her.

Jake had been fighting the urge ever since he had last seen her in school, which was yesterday, Thursday.

That entire day Sherry had been a strange bubble of joy and he couldn't help but become entranced by the way she spoke with so much animation. In gym they had spoken about everything and nothing. He learned that she really liked pepperoni pizza. Apparantly as much as he liked apples, and she loved Pepsi.

But now it was Friday, and he wouldn't win this minor battle. He needed to talk to her. He wanted to give her a ride to school but knew that she would probably decline, so instead he decided he'd wait for her to show up early like he knew she would.

Everything about her fascinated him, and not in a way where he wanted to know more about the things he already knew, like the fact that she always ate sandwiches, or the fact that she was ridiculously modest.

The fascination lay on the sole fact that he knew absolutely nothing about her. And no matter how he imagined himself easing into the subject of her background he knew it wouldn't work. Mainly because he didn't know where to start, how would he even question her? He would just sound like a cynical lunatic.

**Hey Supergirl, **he wrote, hoping that she would answer quickly. When he glanced up he noticed Steve Burnside passing a joint at the corner of the school. He rolled his eyes back down to his phone. _It's_ _7:48, she's be up right? Classes start at 8:30. _

**Ketchup! How are you? What are you doing up this early. Don't you get up at 8:00 or something? **

He smiled at her response and nodded to himself as he wrote back; **I decided I wanted to get up early today. Where are you? I'm waiting for you by parking lot.**

Her response was hasty; **I'm literally one minute away from the school, see you soon.**

With that he leaned onto his motorcycle and stared out at the parking lot with interest.

Excella Gionne was in her usual spot by her silver car. And naturally her eyes were on him. He tried to resist the urge to roll his eyes away from her, but it was impossible, she made him feel disgusting.

_Can't believe I fucked her, _he muttered mentally.

He could remember that night very vaguely. There had been so much alcohol in his system that he swore the words in the song had started to get slurred. The entire room, which he could not recall now, had been spinning and distinctly he could hear Chris cursing at him, demanding that he stop drinking, he promptly told him to fuck off and started making his way to the sultry brunette in the bathroom doorway.

The rest was one long blur of her naked body, the music pumping through the air, her harsh encouragements.

"Jake!"

He smiled slightly and looked to where Sherry was jogging over to him, he tried to keep his eyes on her eyes as her breasts bounced with her run, _she's going to kill me, _"well aren't you a morning person."

She stuck her tongue out at him as she stopped running and grinned, "you too."

_Only when you're around, _"I had a good sleep."

"Is that why you're here so early?" She asked with playful suspicion, not noticing how almost every student in the parking lot was looking their way.

"Its part of the reason," he noticed how she blushed, obviously picking up on the very subtle suggestion, "how was your Thursday?"

"It was great," she brined enigmatically; "it was seriously so great."

_What the fuck does that mean? _He frowned slightly, _some guy or something? Could that be why she turned me down for Saturday? No, she's not like that… right? _"What made it so great?"

"I can't tell you, it's a secret," she winked and started walking towards the school, he was at her side instantly, "and what about you? How was your Thursday?"

"Boring as fuck," he stated firmly. When he looked to his left he noticed Steve Burnside glaring at him, he let Sherry pass him in her stride and then promptly flipped Burnside the finger, "ended up eating all day," he muttered with annoyance, quickly picking up speed and coming to her side again.

"Let me guess," she pulled open the door to the school and held it open, "apples?"

"Close," he smirked and placed his hand on her upper back, giving her a gentle push and moving her through the door first, "apple pie."

Sherry grinned and thought about that for a moment, "I make the best pie. My pies are the delicious. Would you like me to make one? I can give you a taste."

_I'd fucking love a taste, _he thought with a devilish grin, she caught it and her eyes bulged instantly, she stopped walking.

"N-no I mean… not that type of pie… just… apple pie. Not _my_ pie—

He burst into a fit of chuckles as she tried so hard to explain herself. Just the sight of her awkwardly trying to disarm the statement as if it were a bomb was enough to have him leaning against the locker for support.

"Don't laugh at me!" She gave him a warning shove, it only made him chuckle harder, she crossed her arms with annoyance, "I'll beat you up Jake Muller."

He gave her a dark smirk and straightened up, "oh yeah?"

"Yeah," she frowned at him, doing her best to look serious and failing as he gave her a knowing smile, "I-I will."

"You and Sheva?"

"I don't need Sheva to beat you up."

"That's right; you'd need at least three Chris's."

She narrowed her eyes dangerously and decided today was the day that she would push his buttons, "or I'll just get Steve."

His eyes narrowed too and then he leaned down carefully so that his nose was almost touching her but not quite, "Steve Burnside?"

"Yes."

"That's cute."

"Almost as cute as how much you two love each other, the bromance is there Jake, you just have to admit it." She smiled teasingly, noticing how his face grew very annoyed, "you two could be best buddies."

"I'd rather spend three months in church with nothing but a cross to talk to, then spend one day in his presence."

She smiled at him and then took a seat against a locker, he followed suit and slid down to the ground with her, "are you going to tell me why you hate him so much? I feel like there has to be more to this. You really don't like him."

"It's not just the fact that he's a dealer, or the fact that he tries to do whatever everyone else does. It's the fact that he's a scavenger."

"A scavenger?" Sherry frowned with confusion.

Jake frowned as he tried to explain, "whoever I've broken up with in the past – he immediately goes after them."

_I wonder how many girlfriend's he's had… _she thought and felt a flare of jealousy for those girls. Whoever they had been, she imagined they were lucky. She did not imagine that Jake Muller opened up to people. And maybe that's because there was nothing to open up about, but she sensed that there was. Whoever they had been had probably been special enough for him to open up to.

"I know what you're thinking," he guessed as he read her concentrated expression, "how many girlfriends have I had."

"Yes," she smiled as he rested his elbows on his kneels. She sat beside him with her arms around her legs, dwarfed by the size of his shoulders and his long and muscular looking legs, "I mean… I've heard that you're… that you… that you get a lot of girls."

"Is that how they put it?" He shrugged, "I've had flings. I've never really had a girlfriend. And by flings I mean girls that I have sex with regularly. And even that had to end. They get too committed. They get hurt too easily."

"So you're not a guy for commitment?" she raised a brow at this, trying to ignore the strange sense of… disappointment? She knew she should not have been feeling that way, it was irrational, but there was a part of her that knew, very well, that there was an attraction between her and the man at her side.

"It's not that," he frowned as he tried to find the words, "it's just that I don't know how to be a good boyfriend."

"It's really not that hard," she shrugged, "most girls just like to feel special, and they expect you to want to listen to them. And care for them."

He looked at her with interest then, "and what about you?"

"Me?"

_Say it, _he egged himself on, "you're not most girls Sherry. So what do you expect in a boyfriend."

She blushed at his comment and then reflected on the question. It was daunting. She didn't know what she wanted, she always thought she did but when it came down to it, she didn't know, "I guess I like a little bit of everything. I just… I don't like it when guys can't respect me. That's just a big problem for me."

"I think that's a big problem for most people."

"That's what people say until they're put in a situation where they love someone. That person can disrespect you, over, and over, calling you names and hurting you, and you will disregard it all because you love them. It isn't until you respect yourself again that you realize that what's going on isn't love."

The look on her face made him flex his fingers with annoyance, "you've dealt with something like that I guess? The way you say that makes me think you know what you're talking about."

She shrugged, "I'd rather not go into it," she smiled at him kindly, "and you Jake? What do you like in a girlfriend?"

The question made him shrug, "I don't know. As you can see I don't like clingy personalities."

Sherry smiled, "it's not their fault that you're just adorable," she teased kindly. When he flashed her a scowl she laughed and playfully gave him a shove. He didn't budge even an inch, instead he smirked at her and draped an arm around her shoulders, stunning both himself and her. He felt her stiffen slightly but then she loosened and allowed him to pull her into his side, Sherry blushed at the feel of his arm over her shoulder. Very subtly she leaned into his arm and breathed in. He smelled like cinnamon and apples.

_I hope he doesn't notice the gesture… _she thought as she closed her eyes in a tired fashion.

But he certainly did recognize the gesture, she felt so right there. Jake closed his eyes and leaned his head back onto the locker, trying to relish in the feel of Sherry beside him.

_She's tiny, _he noticed. It made him want to protect her just a little bit, with or without her permission.

They sat there like that for a long time. Jake kept his arm over her shoulder and Sherry closed her eyes, leaning into his side and resting her head there. He kept his eyes shut as well.

When the bell rang they jerked with surprise and blinked with annoyance as the alarm rung through the hallways.

"Time to go," he muttered with annoyance. He came to a stand and looked down at her with amusement as she frowned, from where she sat, "don't want to go to class?"

"Kinda," _I'd rather just stay here with you._

"I'll see you in gym," he extended his hand out to her and helped her to her feet. Students started filling in the hallways.

"Bye Jake, see you there."

"Bye Sherry," he smirked and started making his way down the hall with one single thought in mind. He had to see her, one way or another.

_I've got to see her tomorrow, _he thought as he looked behind him and noticed Sherry doing the same, he winked and turned a corner. _I need to see her... one way or another._

Slowly he started formulating a plan. Tomorrow he'd see her.

And he already knew how. He only hoped that she'd react as well as he envisioned.

* * *

**Uh oh... Jake what the hell are you planning? Don't do anything that you might regret!**

**So what do you think Jake is plotting? o_O I think it's pretty obvious but uh... let's hope it works out the way he's hoping it will. **

**SO tell me what yo guys think! Review if you're curious :) I have a plan for Chapter 20, I think you'll all enjoy it quite a bit.**


	17. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

**Chapter XVII**

Sherry lay in her bed with a book in her hands. Her eyes ran over the words easily. In truth she was trying to distract herself from her thoughts. They all revolved around the foul-mouthed, cocky bad-boy that plagued her head like the best type of mental disease. Jake Muller.

Their date was supposed to be tonight but that didn't work out. She tried hard to focus on the words but they all kept leading her back to him. What would they be doing if they were out right now? She imagined that Jake would be scowling at her from across the table at something she said, and then grinning bashfully at her the next.

She knew she liked him. The conclusion had been reached just the day before when he had allowed her to rest on his side. The rest of the day passed smoothly, Chris was still completely unaware of Sheva's situation. She and Sherry had both coordinated that Sheva would get up and meet Chris where she usually did so that he would not be suspicious in the mornings.

_What would Jake do if he found out? _She wondered briefly.

Sheva had decided to spend the night with Chris; Sherry had smirked the entire time as Sheva struggled to keep an innocent composure, explaining that they were just going to hang out. But Sherry knew better, and Sheva knew better. Eventually she gave up, rolled her eyes and kissed Sherry on the cheek.

A sudden creaking came from outside her window. Sherry frowned and looked to the windows. She saw nothing and quickly turned her gaze back down to the book. She didn't even remember what she was reading.

A few seconds passed and the creaking returned. She glared and set the book down.

Her feet carried her over to the window where the fire escape was. Pulling aside the curtains she opened the window and peeked out. There was nothing to the right, but when she swivled her head to the left-

"What the -

"Shh!" Jake hissed quietly as he crouched beside the window. Her eyes bulged with shock, "can't have your parents calling the police on me now can I?"

Her heart beat furiously and she looked behind her quickly. She moved out of the window with ease and shut it behind her. Jake smirked at her nervousness, as she turned and stood. From where he crouched he should have been intimidated from her position. She looked ready to slap him.

"What are you doing Jake!" She whisper-yelled, "my dad is inside there! Do you know what will happen to me if I'm caught? If _you're_ caught?"

"Probably nothing," he shrugged with a sly smile and stood up to his full height. Once again she felt the intimidation of his presence, and yet no discomfort. Ease spread through her limbs without her permission, "I had to see you."

The words made her heart throb and she unwillingly blushed, then ducked her head. The only light was that of the street lamps and the one from her bedroom. It made their skin glow strangely, "you should have warned me."

"And ruin the fun?" His smile widened, "sit with me."

Sherry released a strained breath and silently sat on her window ledge. He sat in front of her, leaning against the iron bars of the fire escape and taking her in. Tonight Sherry was wearing blue sweats and a white shirt. Just beneath it he could make out a lacy blue bra. She didn't catch him looking, and he was thankful for that. On her feet she wore fluffy black socks.

"What made you come?" She asked quietly, bringing one knee to her chest.

"Tonight you and I were supposed to go out," he reminded her with his strangely cocky tone, he imitated her position but instead of resting his chin on his knee he rested an arm and let the other one splay out. His boot touched the window pane she leaned on. Her one stretched out leg barely touched his hip. It reminded him of just how much smaller than him she was.

"Yeah but I told you I couldn't, so what are you doing _here_."

"Like I said before, I had to see you," he dared a peek behind her head and looked to her bedroom, he didn't see any signs of her having had company. No boxer-briefs thrown anywhere and no angry guy storming through – warning Jake to get away from his girl, "were you busy?"

"I was reading," she shrugged and looked behind her warily, "Jake we have to keep our voices down. My dad can't see you."

"I get it," he nodded, "is your dad a hard-ass?"

"No," she shrugged, "he's just… protective."

"With a daughter like you, I can understand why," he noticed her confused stare, "you attract attention."

"What do you mean?"

"Guys in the school," he tried to not let his frustration show, not only was she oblivious to it, but saying it out loud was worse than acknowledging it in his head, "lots of guys have interest in you."

"That's not interest," she rolled her eyes, "that's lust. And I can say the same for you, there's Excella," she raised her brow, "and apparently almost every girl in the school had some urge to get to know you better."

"They just want me to fuck 'em."

She scowled at his language, "yeah but they _want_ to get to know you, it's not just lust. They see you and they want to be like your best friend."

"And you?" he asked before he could stop himself. In order to keep composure he kept his face very still, _where the fuck had that come from? _"What do you think?"

Shyly Sherry lowered her gaze to his chest and then to her own knee. She pretended to be interested in the material very suddenly, "well… I think that you're very mysterious. But I can't tell if that's because there is more to…" She didn't know how to finish. The words were too… private?

"Tell me," he insisted, curious now.

She didn't answer, she just huddled her knees closely to her chest. He frowned darkly and moved forward in a slow stalk. She pressed herself harder against the window pane the closer he came. His blue eyes pierced through her own and her expression became very suddenly vulnerable under the heat of his stare as he leaned over her.

"Answer," he persisted. A cool wind licked her skin of the growing heat.

"No." She squeaked.

"Sherry," his tone was warning and his hand dashed out until he had her by the chin, tilting her face up. He came closer and now she could feel his breath.

_Jesus! He's hypnotizing, _she swore she saw flecks of scarlet in his blue gaze, "you… you're mysterious and I don't know if that's because there is simply nothing to you. Or if it's because you're hiding from something… hiding things of you away from everyone else."

This shocked him and he frowned, he realized that the heat of her face was heating up the pad of his thumb. Cautiously he removed his hand from her face, knowing the effect he had on her.

"Maybe everyone else doesn't have to know," he stated seriously, moving into his previous position. Sherry breathed deeply, trying to rid herself his very unique scent and fill her system with the crispy summer air, "that doesn't make me mysterious."

"Well it's not that," she shrugged, "it's that you don't really talk about yourself. It seems like the only thing that people know about you are things that are really just… rumors."

"Like what?" _What had she heard? _He thought warily, thinking about the fact that she had not gone out on a date with him… _was it because of a rumor?_

"I've heard that you are in jail a lot… or at least in the police station a lot."

"That's not a rumor," he told her simply.

"Oh, well…" she shrugged, "I've also heard that you get around…"

"That's true too."

"You also fight a lot… ended up sending a kid to the hospital."

"That's true."

"Is there a rumor that isn't true?" Annoyance colored her face, but she kept her tone even.

"Well I don't have an STD," he started, counting off with his fingers, "and I don't beat up girls, I don't do drugs, I really don't smoke as often as people think. I've also never drank bleach, I have yet to fuck a teacher," she rolled her eyes and smiled, "and I wasn't abused by my father."

Sherry raised a brow at the last one, "why would anyone say something like that?"

"My father is…" he thought for a moment, "strange."

"How?"

"He's really serious, kind of an asshole; see where I get it from?" He grinned.

"You're not… _that_," she mumbled, "only sometimes." He laughed at that, "what about your mom, what's she like?"

He shrugged, "I really wouldn't know. My mom's dead."

"Oh," Sherry looked down humbly and blinked, he said it like he didn't even care! "I'm so sorry. I had no idea. I just… I didn't know."

"It's not your fault," Jake smirked, "it doesn't hurt to talk about either if that's what you're thinking. I never knew her. It's not painful. I mean sure sometimes I stop and think about it but then I remember that there is nothing for me to miss. I never knew her."

"What happened, if you don't mind me asking?"

"She died in a car accident. Racing to work, she was late – ran a stop sign, died on impact. I was in the back seat but nothing happened, lucky me right?" he rolled his eyes sarcastically, "I remember nothing. The doctors said it was a miracle I survived, or at least that's what my dad tells me," he began chuckling, "a family friend, his name's Hunk, he told me that my dad went nuts."

"What do you mean?"

"The doctors tried to keep him from me, I was a baby so they were extra careful. Apparently a few of them ended up being pressed up against the wall with their feet dangling about this high," he lifted his hand about a foot off the fire escape, "off the ground. He threatened them and they relented. He saw me and cared after me himself - wouldn't let any of them near me."

"How'd he take your mother's death?" Sherry asked curiously.

Jake shrugged, "my father isn't one for emotions. I really don't know."

Sherry nervously bit her lip. She didn't know what to say, so she blurted out anything, "do you want something to eat?"

"Let me guess," he smiled, "a sandwich."

"Of course," she grinned and rolled her eyes, "what do you want on it?" He shrugged, "I'll surprise you."

Sherry opened the window, giving him a nice view of her ass in the process. He stared with a shit-eating grin on his face as she crawled back into her room and dropped to the floor with grace.

"Keep your voice down," she warned him and walked out of the room.

Jake let his eyes run over her room from the window. He liked it, it was so… her.

But he was looking for a few things in particular. He was looking for pictures of her with a guy, signs that she was in a relationship.

_I should just fucking ask her, _he thought with annoyance, _but what if she says yes. What would I do? _In his mind's eye he could see himself looking up as much information about the fucker, what his name was, where he went to school, what his hobbies were, and what made him so goddamn special.

Jake pulled out his phone and noticed that he had a text message from Chris.

**There's a party on Friday, you coming? I'm trying to convince Sheva to come **

Jake rolled his eyes, then answered: **I'll be there.**

Sherry returned a few moments later with two sandwiches. She handed him both plates and crawled back into the fire escape. She closed the window again and then took her sandwich, Jake bit into his and nodded with approval.

"Don't make any sexist sandwich jokes," she warned him, "I'll kick you off this fire escape, Muller."

He raised a brow, "I'm not _that_ type of asshole," she smiled at this, "by the way. Chris wants to go to a party; Sheva might tag along. Are you going to be there?"

Sherry looked nervous again, "I don't know. I'll see what my dad says."

Jake nodded, "I'll be there. I can't have Chris beating people up and getting himself stabbed in the process."

"Jeez," she flinched at the idea, "do you all get into fights so often?"

Jake laughed, "it's not that. It's that when it comes to Sheva he is another person. I told you about this already though. If she comes there will most likely be someone who looks at her a little too closely and sets Chris off."

"I'm sure Sheva can take care of herself," she mumbled and took a bite of her sandwich, when she swallowed she resumed, "so you'll be there?"

"Yeah."

"I'll do my best to be there then," she nodded.

Jake stared at her for a very long time. His eyes were locked in on her with interested. The question was still biting on the back of his tongue, threatening to come out with more force then it should. He sighed, "I wanted to ask you something," she nodded, "are you in a relationship?"

Sherry laughed, "No, I'm not. Are you?"

"No," he sighed, relief flooded him, "so you're single?"

"Yes," she nodded.

He smirked, "good."

For the rest of the night they talked about movies and books. Jake had to bite his lip to keep his laugh inside. She was funny, and as much as he wanted t o ignore it every word she said made him like her just a little more. Everything made him infinitely more curious.

Sherry eventually started getting really tired, and he noticed that she was blinking very slowly. By this time he had made his way to her side and she was slumping onto him, very similar to the way that she had In school. Except now she was really falling asleep and he didn't have the heart to disturb her.

"You're tired?" he mumbled quietly.

"Mhmhmm," she responded quietly.

He stayed silent for a long time and then carefully wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She relaxed into his side and allowed him to pulled her closer. Sherry rested her head on his lap, knowing very well that this was not something 'friends' do, but not having the care to … care!

"Shake me if I snore," she mumbled quietly.

"You better not I'll kick you off this fire-escape," he teased gently. She chuckled but it died out as she fell asleep.

They remained that way for a long time. His fingers rested on her shoulders and for a long time he also napped.

Two hours later Sherry stirred and blinked herself awake, uncomfortable at the iron beneath her.

"Jake?" She whispered quietly and groggily, noticing that he was also waking up. He blinked with annoyance, trying to clear his vision, "I have to get to bed okay?"

"Yeah," he mumbled tiredly.

They both stood and stretched for a long moment. Trying to keep their balance at heir stiff legs protested. She crawled into the window and watched him as he stretched his legs for his climb down.

"Jake," she smiled sleepily at him. He looked at her with curiosity. She just didn't have the heart to send him home, "do you want to stay over? I mean… you'd have to be really quiet. And my dad won't come over to my room, but you can sleepover. I don't feel comfortable with you driving home on that bike. You look like you're ready to fall over."

He raised a brow and shrugged, "you don't have to."

"I want to."

They stared at each other for a long time. When Sheva stepped back from the window he sighed with defeat and slipped into her room. He landed softly on the floor and looked around.

"Its nice," he whispered.

"Thanks," she shrugged back and then folded her hands in front of her, gnawing on her lip, "Uh… I could take the couch and what not."

"Are oyu out of your fucking mind? Get in the bed." He muttered and stalked over to it, she blushed and climbed on, crawling to the left side where a desk lamp was lit. He tried to not salivate at the sway of her backside as she crawled towards it.

"Take your boots off," she ordered.

"No, really?" He rolled his eyes sarcastically, noticing her smirk, "I was going to just jump right in with them on."

Jake sat on the huge bed, noticing how it dwarfed her, and took his boots off quietly. Only then did it settle in.

_Holy fuck what am I doing? _He could practically hear his heart in his ears. He never got nervous, but this was different. He would actually be sharing a bed with this her? _Does this make her more of a good-girl? Or less? _He couldn't decide.

At the same time Sherry was staring at Jake's back with shock, _this was really happening. _She took two steadying breaths, _okay, nothing is happening. Nothing is happening! He's just sleeping in he same place as me. That's all. Dad never gets up from the bed. It'll be fine. _

Jake carefully peeled the bed sheets back and climbed in with his pants and shirt. He let out a hard breath as his head fell on the pillow, it was so hot.

"Is it uncomfortable?" Sherry whispered quietly.

"It's just really hot," he murmured.

_Oh Jesus, _"well… you can… you know. Take your shirt off if you want to. And the jeans… if you have something underneath them." By the end of it she sounded like she was squeaking.

_Shit. _Jake looked at her with amusement and shock, "you're comfortable with that?"

_More than is appropriate, _a strange side of her thought out, Sherry looked up at him with her wide eyes and nodded. She looked like she was afraid.

Jake gave her a dashing grin and stood from the bed. In one fluid movement he peeled off his shirt. His abdomen rippled with muscles and she noticed the distinct outline of his well muscled torso. His arms were wrapped with muscle as well and when he tossed the shirt near his boots she still couldn't rip her eyes away.

She swore she could hear Hallelujah playing in her room.

"Staring isn't nice," he smirked, much to her embarrassment. She blushed and turned over, giving him her back, "and of course I'm wearing something under this, Jesus. I'm not walking around commando."

She stifled her giggle and heard him going for his jeans.

"I'll have you know I chose today to wear boxers, lucky me."

"Oh God," she muttered quietly so he wouldn't her. But he did, he grinned in the dark and moved in beside her.

"Night Supergirl."

"Night Jake."

He pressed his mouth to her pillow, laughing at how choked she sounded. She felt the bed quaking and prayed for the patience to get through this night.

When Jake pulled his mouth away from the pillow he noticed something in the corner of the room.

_Is that Sheva's bag? _He had seen it a dozen times in her locker.

He frowned and shut his eyes; he'd ask Chris about it tomorrow. For now he just needed to focus on sleeping and not seducing the girl on the other side of the bed.

* * *

**Oh Sherrry, you... bad? Good? Girl!**

**And Jake, bad!**

**Oh well. Let's see if these two can get away with this one. **

**:) Sooo Review?! XD what did you guys think. **


	18. Secrets, Secrets Are no Fun

**Chapter XVIII**

Everything was silent in the late morning. Sherry lay curled on her side with her back to Jake, buried under the sheets. He lay spayed beside her. One of his legs hung outside of the mattress and his other crushed under his head.

Everything _was_ silent.

"What the hell!"

The sound abruptly woke Jake and Sherry up. She sat up as her eyes popped open. Jake opened his eyes as well but glared towards the intruder.

Sheva stood there with her hands on her hips, a look of outrage graced her, "well are you two going to explain?" she was speaking very quietly. Sherry jumped up from the bed and quickly shut the door. Sheva glared at Jake, "you!"

"Howdy," he smirked and stood. Sherry turned just in time to watch him stretch. His hips jutted out as he bent backwards, a tremor worked its way up his body at the sensation. He was also wearing black boxers, thankfully.

Her eyes bulged and she whirled to face Sheva again, she hoped that she couldn't catch the blushing, "Sheva please-

"Did you two sleep together?" She asked with an angry glare at Jake and then back at Sherry.

"No! No!" Sherry whispered yelled as Jake tossed his clothing on sluggishly.

"I was having a good dream," he told Sheva, and then he began buttoning his pants, noticing how Sherry trembled, "did you sleep well?"

"Ugh!" She rolled her eyes and turned back to Sheva, "he showed up here last night. This was not planned and no, we didn't sleep together, I swear," Sherry pleaded as Sheva continued to give Jake the death glare, "I just let him crash here for the night. It was really late and I didn't want him going back home and getting into an accident."

"I'm leaving now," Jake smirked and tossed on his shirt and then his gloves. Sherry turned and Sheva rolled her eyes.

"I'm stepping out for a few," she stated firmly, "I'll be back in five minutes."

Sheva stepped out of the room and Sherry whirled around to face Jake. Her face fell and she sighed heavily. He was standing there with a smirk on his face like if this was funny. What if it _hadn't_ been Sheva?

"Time to go Supergirl," he informed her walked forward to her. He swore he detected a small pout, "it was fun."

"I'm glad," she smirked and then looked pointedly to the window, "do you want to sneak out or walk out like a normal person."

"I have to keep up the image Sherry, walking out the door would be…" he paused in front of her, "normal."

Rolling her eyes she tried to release all her worry. But it was impossible. She knew that Sheva wasn't really angry as much as shocked and confused. But what if it had been her dad? What was she thinking?

"I'll text you later okay?" He could detect the worry on her face and did his best to be calm for the both of them, "I'll see you in school."

"Bye Jake."

"Thanks for letting me crash," he smirked and then embraced her. She stiffened only for the slightest second but then let herself be held. His arms were much stronger then she thought they were, and she could feel it now. They were like an impenetrable cage around her.

"Anytime… well, not really but no problem," she teased hugging him back. He chuckled and breathed in, her hair smelled like strawberries.

When he drew away he grabbed his jacket and opened the window. Carefully he stepped out to the fire escape with Sherry behind him. He threw her another grin and then slowly began lowering her ladder down to the street. She watched him as he climbed down and when he got to the bottom she stepped out to the fire escape and pulled it back up.

Below Jake started up his motorcycle and waited until the ladder was secured back where it belonged then he was off.

_What an awesome fucking night, _he thought as he zoomed off towards Chris' apartment.

**…**

Timidly Sherry stepped out of her room and to the kitchen. Sheva was standing there with a raised brow and a hand on her hips, expectant.

"Well?" The dark haired woman asked, "are you going to start from the beginning or are you actually going to pretend you don't want to?"

Sherry laughed and walked to the fridge, she was in the mood for a grilled cheese sandwich.

_It's a miracle I haven't turned into a sandwich. _

"He showed up here… last night about an hour after you left," Sherry stated quietly so that her father wouldn't hear. Sheva sat on a bar stool and nodded, "when I asked him what was he doing here he basically told me that he had to see me."

"_Had_ to see you?" Sheva raised a brow at this as Sherry started up a pan with butter.

"Well…" Sherry shyly looked away, pretending to suddenly be interested in watching the butter melt, "he asked me out a while ago… on a date. And I couldn't go because my dad said no so… I guess he wanted to make it up that way. Even though it's not his fault at all. My dad's just… protective."

"He asked you out? Oh God I knew it," Sheva shook her head, "he is into you."

"What? You really think so? I mean, I like him too, he's…" Sherry didn't know how to put it but tried, "interesting. To say the least."

Sheva let out a low whistle and smirked, "did you guys kiss?"

"No," Sherry shook her head and pulled out the cheese, placing it on the bread and then tossing the sandwich into the pan, "we didn't."

"Well that's a damn shame," Sheva raised a brow.

"Yeah…" Sheva sighed slightly, "it kind of is."

…

"You look like shit," Jake greeted Chris with a raised brow, noticing how red Chris' eyes were.

"Yeah, I stay up all night, if you know what I mean," Chris grinned devilishly and let Jake into his apartment, "Sheva left a couple of minutes ago. She needed to go home."

Jake frowned, "she stopped by Sherry's. She walked in when I got up."

Chris frowned with confusion, "wait what?"

Jake smirked and threw himself onto the couch, "I slept over Sherry's last night. She let me crash over there so that I wouldn't get into an accident on the bike." Sensing Chris' confusion he started over, "I asked her out, remember? She turned me down so I decided to go to her place and just hang out for a while. It was pretty cool. We ate and then it was time to go. She let me crash because it was so late."

Chris narrowed his eyes. He was suspicious of Jake, "did you have sex with her?"

"No," Jake glared, "I didn't touch her."

"Good," Chris scowled, "after that shit that you and Billy plotted—

"I'm not seriously going along with that; I'm not that much of an asshole." Why was he even explaining himself, Jake wondered, Chris always thought the worst, "anyway. In the morning Sheva woke us up. She was just standing there."

Chris crossed his arms from where he stood, "I dropped her off at home how the hell would she have had been doing at Sherry's house?"

"I don't know, but I saw her bag there too," Jake shrugged, thinking of Sherry's bed and how it smelled just like her. He was almost certain that his smell was now embedded on the sheets, "she came in without knocking too. Like if she had keys or some shit."

"When was this?"

"Like… twenty minutes ago, why?" Jake could see the annoyance and confusion growing more pronounced on Chris' face.

"I just messaged her and she told me she was at her house watching TV."

"Well she's at Sherry's."

Chris pulled out his phone instantly and speed dialed Sheva. Jake sighed; he already knew that this was not headed anywhere good.

**…**

"Shit," Sheva whispered as she stared at her Caller ID, "Sherry it's Chris," she gave her a warning stare. Sherry nodded quickly and turned down the television.

Sheva stood and answered the call, Sherry followed on her heels, "Hello?"

"Sheva," Chris started, his tone was like gravel, hard and cold, "where are you?"

"Well hello to you too Chris," she rolled her eyes. Anxiety was pooling in her stomach, why was he asking her that? Did he suspect something? "I'm at home, why?"

"Because Jake is here and he just finished telling me that he saw you at Sherry's."

Her eyes bulged and Sherry stared at her with worry. She didn't hear what Chris had said fully but she did catch Jake's name. That wasn't good. It occurred to both of them only then that Jake had probably mentioned Sheva's very sudden appearance to Chris.

"Uh… yeah about that," Sheva started nervously, she didn't want to lie to him, "I've been staying with Sherry for a while now."

Silence was her only response. It was an angry silence. She could already see Chris balling his hands into fist against his forehead, trying to not lash out on something around him. Finally he spoke with a clenched jaw, she knew him, and she knew that he was probably struggling to control his tone of voice too, "what do you mean?"

"Well," she sighed and sat on the bed. Sherry made a move to leave the room but Sheva pulled her to the bed, "Sherry offered me her place. I… I don't know what to say-

"Are you kidding me Sheva?" Chris spit, "what the hell have you been staying with Sherry for?"

Sheva swallowed. She didn't like his anger. It was so unlike him to be angry with her. It was so ugly on him. He was her joy. The thought of him so angry with her made her feel like some kind of disease, "I just… I got kicked out," she could hardly hear herself, "my parents kicked me out."

"And you never told me!" He raised his voice, making her jump with surprise, "are you serious? You didn't think that that was something I should know? Are you out of your mind?"

"I didn't want you to feel like I was a burden," she croaked gently. Sherry wrapped a supportive arm around her shoulders. She had never seen Sheva so small, not even as she had told her the very same thing that she was explaining to Chris now. She looked like if she was being punched in the gut over and over, "I just didn't want to be a nuisance—

"You know what a nuisance is?" he interrupted, "when you don't tell me shit. You never tell me anything! You just hide yourself away from me like if –

"Chris please-

"I can't believe you!" He interrupted again, "did you really not think that-

"It's not your problem," she responded. Sherry could see Sheva's face becoming impassive, as if the words weren't hurting her. And she knew that Chris could hear it over the phone, "it's my problem and I'm not going to live in your apartment like if-

"I can't believe you. We've been dating how long now and you didn't think to tell me?"

"I don't answer to you," she responded.

"Oh really? Okay, then don't talk to me since you never do anyway," he spit over the phone, "I'm fucking sick and tired of being kept out of the loop like if I'm nothing to you. You tell Sherry and not your own boyfriend? I can't take this anymore Sheva!"

"Okay," she nodded her head as if accepting defeat, "bye Chris."

And just like that she hung up.

"What happened?" Sherry asked with shock. Sheva took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She held the oxygen in her legs and then expelled it slowly. Sherry could see the tears brimming, threatening to fall. But Sheva wouldn't let them.

"He…" her voice died, "he broke up with me," she released a teary and shaky smile, one tear fell and Sherry embraced her tightly, Sheva instantly broke into a fit of tears and shaking.

**…**

"What the fuck did you do?" Jake jumped to his feet as Chris stared at his phone with shock, "you just broke up with Sheva?"

"I… guess. I just didn't mean it. I didn't mean it like _that_!" his eyes opened wider as he took in the situation. It had been that fast. "Oh shit-

"You idiot!" Jake snatched the phone away from Chris, "are you kidding me? Do you know what she must be like right now?"

"She's been staying with Sherry because she got kicked out of her place," he mumbled as if in a daze. His forehead started drumming violently, "shit…I was just angry I didn't really mean to do that. It wasn't supposed to come out like that. We have to go to Sherry's place I mean I can't leave things like that with her," there was a tightness in his chest.

"Here," Jake started calling Sheva back and handed the phone to Chris who trembled as he took it into his hands.

Chris waited a few moments and then hung up when it was clear that she had no intention of picking up, "call Sherry," he commanded Jake.

The thought that Sheva might be crying right now hurt him as much as any physical injury would .He felt it, very real and painful in his chest. He had seen her cry before. It didn't stir up any pity or sadness, just anger. Anger at anyone, or anything that hurt her, in this case it was himself. And as much as he wanted to suffer for it he couldn't because that meant that she was hurting too.

"Sherry?" Jake started, as she answered, "I'm here with Chris, what the hell is going on? Is Sheva okay?"

"No," Sherry responded softly, "she's not okay Jake. Chris broke up with her…"

"He didn't mean it like that," he noticed Chris frowning at him, "do you think she'll talk to him? I mean we tried to call her but-

"She doesn't want to," Sherry answered carefully, "she's pretty bad right now. I guess that she never expected him to just… do that. She –

"We're going over," Chris muttered and started grabbing at his shoes, "tell her to meet us at the door-

"Tell him no," Sherry answered smoothly. She could hear Chris in the background, Jake stilled Chris by putting a hand on his shoulder and shaking his head at him. Chris turned red with frustration, "tell him to just give her some time. Tomorrow they can talk or something but right now he needs to just give her space."

"Sherry says to just give her space," Jake reiterated.

"Fuck that!" Chris glared, "I need to talk to her, and she needs me."

"Tell him he'll talk to her tomorrow Jake," she repeated, "Sheva seriously doesn't want to talk to him right now and I doubt that him coming over here all angry at himself is going to do anything."

"Sherry insists—

Chris snatched the phone away from Jake and pressed it to his ear, "Sherry?"

"Hey Chris," Sherry smiled sadly, "what's up?"

"Sherry I really need to talk to her. I said some fucked up shit and I –

"I know Chris, but right now you just need to give her space. She's dealing with a lot and smothering her isn't going to help."

"She's my girlfriend!"

Sheva heard that bit and snorted in the background, _"I WAS his girlfriend!" _

Chris let out a hard breath, "Sherry I'm going to give her space. But you tell her that I'll talk to her _eventually_. Tell her I said sorry. Please."

"Sheva," Sherry spoke to her now, Chris pressed his ear closer to the phone, desperately listening for any hint of Sheva, "Chris said that he'll leave you alone… for now. And that he's really sorry."

There was no response.

"Chris I'll see you in school tomorrow okay?"

"Bye Sherry, thanks."

"Bye Chris." Just like that the conversation was over.

Jake took the phone back and shook his head at his dumbfounded his friend, "can't believe you just did that."

"Neither can I." Chris responded quietly and blinked at his hands, they felt numb, "I've been with her for such a long time, I can't even… What the hell _was_ that?"

"I don't know, but you better start thinking of some way to make it up," Jake threw himself down to the couch, Chris followed suit, "Sheva loves you. She'll forgive you."

"I hope," Chris muttered.

Neither had ever been so excited for the day to end. Chris because he was going to get to see Sheva, he needed to talk to her, Jake because he was going to see Sherry.

Monday would make for a very interesting day.

* * *

**:O Damn it Creva! Yay for Shake!**

**Review! :O THANK YOU FOR ALL THE RESPONSES :) Next chapter might be a bit short, but chapter 20 will make a lot of you happy. :) **


	19. The Calm

**Chapter XIX**

Monday started off just as dreary as expected. In the morning Sherry asked Sheva if she was going to go to school, Sheva told her that she was going to stay home that day. She kissed Sheva's temple and bid her farewell.

When Sherry got to school she was not surprised to see Jake waiting for her. They talked about the events of last night, and try as she might she couldn't help but feel a slight sense of relief to be with Jake.

"They'll be fine," he told her when she sat pensively at his side, waiting for the bell to ring, "don't worry."

"I hope so. I mean I know I don't know them very, _very_ well but I can't help but feel that it would be tragic for them to fall apart over something like this."

"Sheva should have told him," Jake reasoned and shrugged, casting a dark glare at Excella who was watching them from the other side of the parking lot, Sherry didn't notice. She was too busy playing with her shoelace, "I can see why Chris was angry."

"Yeah, I guess so. But the way he flipped out was unreasonable."

"Agreed."

Sherry and Jake changed the topic to more lighthearted things and to both their dismay the bell rang.

They both breezed through their classes and in gym Sherry and Jake both dreaded lunch.

When it finally came Sherry was the first to sit down. Since Sheva wasn't there she waited patiently for the boys, and when they came striding through the door her heart broke at Chris' face.

He looked as good as he normally did, except that instead of the usual grin and the twinkling in his eye there was a deep look of concentration. The closer he came the more nervous Sherry got. When she looked to Billy and saw his wary expression she knew that this was probably not going to be a good lunch period.

"Hey guys," she smiled.

"Hey," Chris mumbled and stuffed his hands in his pockets awkwardly as Billy and Jake took a seat. He stood in front of his chair and flexed his jaw, "where's Sheva? Is she late or something?"

"No," Sherry shook her head and looked anywhere else but him, "she's just… she's at home. She didn't want to be here today… especially after what happened yesterday."

"Oh…" he frowned with disappointment and took a seat. Jake bit his lip and thought of a way to continue the conversation without making it awkward.

"Billy, what'd you do this weekend?"

Billy grinned, "I met up with Rebecca, I'm taking her to the party this Friday. It's going to be good you know? Hanging out in a social environment and whatever, you guys should come out. I think it will be fun."

"Is Sheva gonna' go?" Chris asked with a scratch at his head, "if she goes I want to be there. You'll tell me right?" He looked at Sherry pointedly.

"Well I don't know Chris," she felt uncomfortable, "if she doesn't want me to than I don't know that I should."

"Fine," he sighed, "then I'll go just to make sure. Can't have all those fucking perverts staring at her and shit."

Jake frowned at this. He knew that there were going to be people there who he didn't like there. Knowing this made him a bit nervous. Sherry was going to be there. And as much as he wanted to see her there he was completely aware that if someone should touch her the wrong way there would be hell to pay. _I'll end up looking like a fucking jealous psychopath._

"What time is the party?" Jake asked Billy with a bit of a wary stare.

"It's going to really get started around 11;" he shrugged, "who knows when it'll end. I don't even know whose throwing the damn thing I'm just going for the booze."

"Chris are you giving us a ride?"

Chris looked at Jake with some concentration, "I guess."

Jake smiled at Sherry then, "we'll see you there."

**…**

When Jake gave Sherry a ride back to her place he was all too aware of the way she pressed her body up against his. She seemed to have more ease doing it lately and she wasn't afraid to really hold onto him. It was nice, the feeling of her small frame behind his.

Whenever he'd turn a corner he could feel her arms tightening around him the slightest bit, so he decided to take a detour.

"Woah! where are we going?" She asked over the roar of the motorcycle as he completely veered off of the proper street.

"We're going to take a bit of a break and talk for a while!" Also, he couldn't help but indulge himself in the way she pressed her arms tightly to his body.

He rode towards the edge of town where they would have more privacy. It was a parking lot that overlooked the water. He never thought to take anyone there before, and as he pulled up to the place he could see why. The place was deserted; the lines that represented the parking spaces were fading. There weren't flowers around the deserted lot either, just stubborn weeds of grass that refused to go down under the weight of the cement.

"What is this?" Sherry asked quietly when he silenced the motorcycle. He stood and watched her awkwardly stumble off of his bike, "is this like your secret hideaway or something?" She grinned wryly.

"No," he chuckled and then stared out to the water. A hard cool breeze was making his eyes burn, and Sherry ducked her head against it as it threatened to mess up her hair, "come here for a minute will you?"

Jake wrapped an arm around her waist confidently and steered her towards the water. She didn't protest or stiffen at him, she just shivered and leaned into him slightly, making it known to him that she didn't mind. He tried to not grin at her display of ease with him, she wasn't protesting. That was good right? She felt so good on his arm. She small and soft.

"What did you want to talk about?" she murmured quietly and tried to remain cool at the feel of his arm around her waist. They stopped and stared out at the water. It sparkled against the sunlight and threw its pattern in their direction. It looked like water was dancing on their faces.

"I just wanted to talk to you…" he looked down at her and noticed her small smile, "by now you should know that I'm gonna' spend most of my time trying to be around you."

"I don't mind that," she admitted shyly and then returned the compliment with a piece of honesty, "I like you. You're… different."

"That's your way of saying I'm an asshole."

"Well," her smile turned teasing, "not _only_."

He chuckled at her humor, "you have to come by my house sometime."

"I don't think that's going to happen," she sighed, "my dad-

"Be a rebel again. Come over. I'd love to have you."

"Wouldn't your dad get angry or something?"

"No, he's never there."

"I'll think about it. How's that?" she suggested, still very aware of his arm around her waist, it was such a simple gesture but yet she felt it spoke volumes. _He likes me, _she thought pensively, _but does he just want to get in my pants? He's got quite a reputation for that. But Sheva would warn me if that was the case right? She knows him._

"Don't leave me waiting for too long," his eyes became intense, the blue shined, "I'm not known for my patience."

She felt as if though a flash of heat went through the center of her chest and stopped somewhere long ignored, _oh Jesus._

_What is he doing to me?_

"I-I'll get back to you with an answer soon then." She stuttered out nervously.

"You better," his hand was suddenly under her chin and he pressed her a little tightly to the front of his body. Her heart stuttered and changed rhythm, throwing off years of its constant pace. All because of Jake Muller. "I'd really like to get to talk to you more."

"I'm not really that interesting to talk to," Sherry murmured, sneaking a peak at his lips.

"I think you are, you could have kept me up all night with your rants about you."

"I think you're delusional," she countered quietly, "I'm not boring, I wouldn't say that, but I'm hardly fascinating. You're the one with all the quirks."

"You have quirks," he removed his hand from under her chin and crossed his arms, he noticed the slight frustration in her face and grinned on the inside, "you have a fascination with sandwiches. You love cats; you also really like the color blue. You have an unhealthy obsession with The Phantom of The Opera and The Crow and you don't curse. Every time _I_ do you frown just the slightest bit."

Sherry shifted uncomfortably, "well whatever."

He burst into laughter at that.

They continued to laugh and talk of different things before Sherry told him that she had to go. She could see the slight disappointment in his features, but he towed her, yet again by the waist, to the motorcycle. Her heart beat furiously at the small gesture. It almost hurt.

The entire way home she shut her eyes and enjoyed the wind in her hair.

**…**

When Sherry got back to her house she waved Jake goodbye and made her way up to her apartment. She was pleased to find that Sheva was up and actually cooked her rice and chicken. She kissed her father hello and noted that he looked a little pale.

After asking if he was okay he assured her that he was. Then she made her way back to the kitchen and began eating.

"This tastes amazing!" Sherry exclaimed.

"Thanks," Sheva smiled and then plopped down beside Sherry, "how was school?"

"It was good, but you know, Chris was asking of you."

Sheva rolled her eyes, but Sherry saw the clear look of sadness upon her face. And for a long time the only thing that occurred to Sherry was to be silent. It seemed to be the right call because Sheva started speaking, completely of her own volition and uncensored, "I miss him already. How pathetic is that? It hasn't even been a full day and I feel like if I'm falling apart. Or at least like I know I'm going to… and tomorrow when I go back to school I know he's going to be there, waiting for me at lunch. Then I'll look at him and I'll completely fall apart, and not because he hurt me but because I know I'm hurting him."

"Well I hope that things get better, I think you should talk to him Sheva. He really misses you, and you miss him too."

"I know. I'll talk to him eventually. But for now I don't want to. I need to… gather my thoughts, you know? Not only that but I want to be able to just take a break for a while. Chris and I are always attached at the hip. Maybe this is good for us."

"Have you texted him?"

Sheva nodded, "he asked me why I wasn't talking to him," she laughed, "he's so cute even when I'm pissed off with him. I just told him that I needed time to myself. He told me that he needed to talk to me. I ignored him after that."

"Oh…" Sherry frowned, "well… are you going to the party on Friday? I'm thinking I'm going to have to sneak out of here and I might need a partner in crime," the words tumbled out of her mouth without any thought.

Was she really going to sneak out? Well she didn't see the harm. Her father would be asleep.

"I'll go," Sheva nodded, "I need a reason to throw on my party heels. And I'm dressing you up and doing your makeup. No complaints."

"I'm not complaining," Sherry smiled.

"Good." Sheva grinned, "and you're wearing heels, so don't even try to put up a debate."

This would be fun... _right_?

* * *

**...Next chapter is THE PARTY.**

**What could POSSIBLY go wrong? **

**:) Stay tuned for Chapter XX. This is going to be fun. **

**Review? :) What are your predictions? **


	20. Wicked Games

**Chapter XX**

"I can't believe I just got away with that horrible lie," Sherry whispered as she and Sheva locked arms and began making their way through the streets. They were not dressed yet. Each wore a pair of baggy sweats that would be easy to take off once the time came.

She had gone into her father's room dressed just the same a few minutes earlier and told him that Sheva and she were going to go spend the night with Chris to watch movies. He promptly asked her if Jake would be there, when she said no he nodded in agreement.

How had he believed her? The entire time she stuttered awkwardly and had the most guilty look written all over her face, or at least she believed she did. And she was all to aware of the trembles in her voice.

"Your makeup looks awesome, I just need to add the black," Sheva smiled brightly.

"Well… let's finished getting dress first."

"Okay."

Sheva and Sherry quickly found an alley and one kept watch as the other began changing into her party clothing. They had brought a bag with them that carried their dresses and their shoes.

When Sheva stepped out of the alley the first thing that Sherry did was pop her jaw open in shock.

Sheva wore a leather pair of shorts with a purple top. Sherry also noticed that Sheva had a tattoo which she had never seen before. It was stamped on her arm nicely. And her strong brown legs were shining as she stepped out. On her dainty feet she wore strange black wedges with silver buckles. They were more like boots as they wrapped around her ankles.

"Jeez Sheva, way to put me to shame."

"You look gorgeous. What are you talking about?" Sheva rolled her eyes as she stared at Sherry.

Sherry wore a fitting pair of skinny jeans. They accentuated her petite curvy form. On her upper body she wore a blue shirt that was button down, but the sleeves were missing. It framed her neck gracefully and made her look strangely alluring. On her feet Sheva had forced on a pair of dangerously high blue heels. Sherry, luckily, knew how to walk on heels. Otherwise Sheva worried she would break her neck.

"Do you think that the guys are there?" Sheva asked as she grabbed Sherry's arm and hurriedly pulled her down the street. She was a bit excited to get to the party, and try as she might to deny herself an answer as to why – she knew that it had everything to do with Chris Redfield.

"I'm sure they are." Sherry smiled, "and remember, don't get drunk, I won't be able to take you home… stumbling my way home with you on these heels."

"Hell no," Sheva laughed, "that's so not me."

The entire week she had avoided Chris. She found that it was surprisingly hard. During lunch he would do his best to track her down and she would hide out in the bathroom until she was certain he had left. And when she was in her classes he would wait for her outside. She instantly pretended she had to talk to the teacher, forcing him to leave unless he wanted to be late. And every day she was forced to take a different exit to get out of the school.

It was a while before they actually got to the house. But as soon as they were on the road they could see it. There were teens littered on the porch and their obnoxious laughter was ringing wildly. It reminded Sheva of why she usually avoided this type of scene.

"Oh God," Sherry grinned with excitement as they approached the house, "this is going to be fun."

"Mhm, I hope." Sheva muttered as they started going up the porch. She didn't miss the glares that a few girls shot their way. She quickly stuck the finger out at them as Sherry pulled her through the door.

**…**

"No I don't want to dance with you," Chris muttered out as a girl, whose name he didn't know, asked him. The music was blasting, and the bass was pumping through his body. It amazed him that he wasn't deaf yet.

Jake smirked and sipped on his beer with a wandering eye. He was looking for the short blonde. He was certain she was going to walk through the door at any second now. And with every minute that passed his urge to see her grew more fervent.

"When do you think they'll be showing up?" Chris asked Jake, crossing his arms and watching people dance and stumble drunkenly around the house.

"I don't know, I'm hoping soon though, she's been fucking avoiding me," Chris glared at a girl who was eyeballing him dirtily, "she won't even-

"There they are." Jake smirked as he watched Sheva's head following after Sherry's bright blonde hair. Chris' eyes darted like magnets to Sheva, and as soon as both males laid eyes on them it was like the girls sensed it.

"Jake!" Sherry grinned and pulled Sheva in the same direction. The taller female stared at Chris stonily as he drank her in. Jake couldn't remove his eyes off of Sherry.

Her makeup, thankfully, was not too much. The dark eye shadow which he was certain Sheva was responsible for, made her blue eyes look wider. Strangely wide. When she stopped in front of her he felt as if though she were trying to make him choke on his breath, he looked… sexy. And her hair had a slightly tousled and edgy look to it which made her lose a bit of the innocent look that he was used to.

"How long have you guys been here? You two look great," Sherry spoke with a slight yell. The pumping music was making it hard to hear. And the house wasn't that big in the first place which made everything just a bit louder. The sound was more focused on the bodies in the room.

Rather than raise his voice Jake bent down slyly and spoke in her ear, "we look like shit, you on the other hand..."

Sherry shook her head with disagreement. Chris and Jake were both an eyeful. Jake wore a long-sleeved black shirt, it was snug against his body, and he wasn't even wearing his gloves. He also wore fitting dark pants that were tucked snugly into his combat boots. And while she knew that it was no different then what he usually wore it was the slight V – neck that drew her eye to his collar bone.

Chris on the other hand was wearing a green T shirt which stretched against the muscle on his frame. His jeans were looser but he also wore thick shoes. His eyes were pinned to Sheva, she rolled hers away from him and looked at Jake.

"Do you want something to drink?" She asked.

"I've got a beer in my hand," he showed her and smirked, "do you want one?" When she shook her head he looked at Sherry pointedly, she bit her lip and shook her head no, "you're staying sober tonight?"

"Of course." She smiled, "now, I have to go find chips or something, Sheva do you want to join me?"

"Yeah," she mumbled and before Chris could reach for her they were already disappearing into the mob of bodies.

**…**

"Doritos!" Sherry laughed as she found a bowl of chips. Sheva grinned as Sherry excitedly ate. All around them girls flirted with guys who tried so hard to play it cool, but Sheva could basically smell their nerves in the air, "Sheva we're going to dance right? We have to."

"Well, I can't dance with any guys, unless I want Chris to start a fight," she smirked.

"You should talk to him," Sherry smiled slightly.

"Maybe. I'll think about it. Anyway, I need to see if any of my other friends are here, I'll text you if anything so keep your phone close."

Sherry nodded and swayed slightly to the music. It was a song she remembered from when she was young, a guilty pleasure of hers, she chuckled slightly at the lyrics, and sang along, "snap your fingers. Do the step. You can do it all by yourself, let me see ya' do it." She continued to rock slightly to the rhythm f Lil' Jon's blaring voice.

"You like this type of music?" An unfamiliar voice came from the left.

She turned and stared at the stranger.

He gorgeous.

His hair was slightly turned up at the front, colored a light brown with some stranger blonde flecks in it. He had a small face with dreamy, light brown eyes. His lips were full and his eyebrows were perfectly arched on his delicate brow. One was raised at her as if disbelieving.

"Uh, I'm… what?" She asked stupidly.

"I asked if you liked this type of music," he beamed at her with a dazzling white grin.

"Yeah, I mean, to dance to yes," she blushed, "I mean… its _Lil Jon_, it's fun."

"Would you like to dance then?" He asked and took her hand before she offered it, he was already dragging her towards the dance floor, "I assume you can dance."

She shrugged, "kind of…" The writhing bodies around her threw her off balance slightly but he kept his hand firmly around hers. Sherry allowed him to pull him to the center of all the grinding girls and the salivating guys. She became very aware suddenly of the fact that she didn't know him, she had never even seen him at school.

"What's your name sweetheart," he smirked down at her and stepped closer to her. He towered over her, _but not in the same way that Jake does. Jake's height is not so intimidating as much as it is… comforting, protective._

"I'm Sherry," she breathed and stilled her breathing.

This was a party.

And yet she was acting like if she were in a catholic schoolgirl party.

"I'm Piers Nivens."

She grinned and turned her back to him, when he touched her hips she did her best to not stiffen. Instead she moved closer to him and began dancing like she hadn't in a long time.

**…**

"Sheva!"

"What?" Sheva whirled around and faced Chris. He frowned down at her, trying hard to focus on being calm and not forcing her to listen to him by pulling her into the bathroom, "this is a party. I don't feel like dealing with your shit tonight, okay?"

"My shit?" He blanched, "are you kidding? I've been trying to talk to you and you've been avoiding me like the goddamn plague. I'm trying to apologize to you-

"A party is really not the place to do that. I'm really trying to enjoy myself right now Chris can we not?" She pleaded with him, trying to not feel hurt by his expression, he looked betrayed, "I'll talk to you later."

"Enjoying yourself? Is there someone here that I should know about?" His eyes immediately scanned for any 'stragglers' as he named them in his head. Stragglers were guys that followed her and tried their best to look nonchalant as they came after her.

"No, Chris, there is no one here," she sighed, trying to ignore the pleasant feeling in her stomach at his protective attitude, "let's just talk about this later okay? I promise I'll meet you outside before this party is over."

"Fine." He glared. Then he took her arm in his hand gently and tugged her against him, her brown eyes glazed over with the urge to kiss him. He was so close, it would be so easy, and Sheva knew that he wouldn't protest, "If I see any guys eyeballing you I'm going to shove a bat up their ass."

"God," she glared with disgust and tried to keep the wry smile from her lips, "way to be gross."

"Fair warning."

"Fine," she rolled her eyes. Then they narrowed in on Jake who was glaring at something from the corner of the room.

"I love you." Chris reminded her.

"Love you too," she muttered and stomped away. He laughed and admired her ass as she went.

**…**

_What the fuck? She's kidding me. So not only is she a dancer. A great dancer actually. But she's dancing with Triple P, _Jake seethed from where he stood. He didn't like the way Sherry was dancing with the guy, her little body knew how to move all too well against a body that was not his. And as much as he knew that he had no right to feel so jealous, he didn't care. He just _couldn't_ care.

It was taking all of his control to not take the bottle in his hand and hurl it across the room. Piers was moving a bit too comfortably against Sherry's little frame. They weren't in his vision at all times, there were too many writhing bodies on the dance floor, and yet she stood out like a store thumb with her shocking blonde hair.

"Is she making you angry?" A purr came from his right. Jake didn't have to turn his head to know that it was Excella, he took another swig of his beer and kept his eyes locked on Sherry, "are you jealous that she is dancing with that boy? I can't blame her though, he's cute."

"Fuck off," Jake spat and then pushed himself off the wall. Sherry had finished dancing and was making her way to the kitchen. Piers was following behind her like a lost puppy and Sherry hardly seemed to notice him, _what is it that Chris called people like that? Stragglers? _Jake mused as he watched Sherry grab a cup of Pepsi, _yeah. That's what Triple P is, a fucking straggler._

Sherry looked up as Piers stopped in front of her with a smile, but behind him she noticed Jake and his demure expression. She smiled as Jake stepped closer.

"Sherry," Jake stopped behind Piers who looked to him with annoyance, "I need to talk to you." He could feel the alcohol burning through him, accentuating every thought in a command. It made him sound damn near desperate, but he just didn't care.

Piers glared at the school jerkoff and then sized him up, Jake hardly noticed him. Sherry's eyes were locked with him, unwillingly. _He's to know what it is that he's doing to me, _she thought, _he's not even blinking. It's like he knows that if he blinks he will cut the connection or something. _

"Y-yeah, whatever you want," she nodded and stepped around Piers who looked just about ready to pop.

Possessively Jake threw an arm around her shoulder, very aware of the fact that Piers was glaring at him. He flashed him a grin behind Sherry's head and then led her out the door into the cool summer night.

**…**

Sheva glared at Chris from where she stood.

It wasn't that he was doing anything to purposely annoy her, she wasn't an idiot. She knew that he had every right to speak to whoever he wanted. But it was the knowledge that the girl was openly flirting with him that made her so angry.

Chris was smiling down at the shorter woman who was cocking her head to the right in an attempt to be sexy. But Chris seemed to be engrossed in whatever he was telling her. Sheva knew only because he had that glazed look in his eye. Like when he spoke about the army, or history, or chicken.

Sheva tapped her foot restlessly against the wall behind her and took another sip of her soda.

She knew she had to control herself. It didn't mean anything, and she didn't doubt his devotion to her even when they were fighting, but it was times like this that she wished she could slap him for being so innocent as to the girls intentions.

The girl reached out, and it happened like in slow motion. Sheva could see her intention before Chris did. She was going to try to touch him, and Sheva knew, better than anyone, that this was not a good thing to do.

Instantly she began making her way towards the girl, knowing that she would be far too late by the time she reached them anyway, but needing to be there when it happened.

Her eyes were locked in on Chris as the girl touched his chest, almost too playfully, and then his entire body seized up.

"Chris!" She called his name and shoved past Excella Gionne who was standing in her way, "Chris!"

She saw the contraction of his jaw and a strange ripple on his arms as the girl continued to rub his chest. Sheva reached them and angrily shoved the girl away from him.

"What the fuck is your problem!" The petite girl shouted as her drink spilled to the floor.

"Don't touch him," Sheva breathed, out of breath. She turned to stare at Chris whose eyes appeared dazed and she took his hand in hers, gently rubbing his knuckles, "Chris? Chris are you okay? Say something to me please?"

He swallowed thickly and nodded slightly, his deep brown eyes seemed removed and very far away from the situation. It scared her but she had dealt with this before. They just needed privacy.

Her eyes darted around but she knew that everything was filled. Her only option would be to go outside. That was fine, he needed the fresh air anyway.

Very quickly she began pulling Chris out the door and to the backyard of the house. He followed her as if in a stupor and put up no protest.

When they reached the backyard she quickly shut the door and turned around to face him, very aware of the strange looks they were getting from the people inside the house.

"Chis? Are you okay? It's okay, I'm here," she continued to rub his knuckles, hoping to bring him back to earth somehow. His removed stare became more fixed and she could feel the pressure removing itself from her chest as he blinked and then looked down at her. Tears brimmed in her vision as he came back to her.

"What happened?" He whispered with confusion.

"It's okay, it doesn't matter, no one can hurt you," Sheva embraced him tightly and pressed her forehead against his scarred chest, very aware of the fact that she was the only one he would ever allow to get so close, "your parents will never hurt you again."

"Oh, God, Shev," Chris' voice sounded thick and he buried his face into her hair, embracing her tightly, "it was the girl wasn't it? She touched me."

"Yeah, but it's okay, you did good. You controlled yourself."

"I'm so fucked up," he murmured and pressed her tighter to him, her small frame grounded him to reality in the sickest way, "they won't ever take me into The Core like this. I'm all fucked up."

"No, Chris you'll be fine," she disagreed, shaking her head at him for his self-defeating opinion, "you're strong. You've come such a long way. You're going to be okay. I know it"

He nodded and smiled slightly, "are we back together?"

Rolling her eyes Sheva nodded and smiled, "Yes, Chris. We're back together."

"Good," he bent low and kissed her, this time she didn't stop him from deepening the kiss.

**…**

Jake led Sherry out to the lawn, pulling her by the hand and ignoring the very lustful stares that some girls shot in his direction. Sherry noticed too but instead of being annoyed she found herself smiling because she knew how he felt about her. She wished he didn't in a way, because the butterflies in her stomach were really getting annoying.

When Jake finally stopped they were on the curb. He was all too aware of the tightness of Sherry's pants and tried to keep his mind on track.

"What were you doing with that guy?" He asked a bit harshly, she raised a brow at his tone and he continued, "do you know him from somewhere? You seemed to be having a lot of fun with Triple P."

"Triple P?" Sherry raised a brow.

"Punk Pussy Pears," he explained.

"His name is _Piers_," she stated, taking her hand out of his slowly and cocking her head to the side, "and he's really nice. He just wanted to dance, why am I even explaining myself to you Jake? You shouldn't concern yourself with little things like a dance. It was really not a big deal at all."

"It's a big deal," he glared down at her, annoyed by the fact that she refused to see things as they were, "he wants more from you than you think. They all do. They're disgusting and I don't like the way they've been looking at you. Especially him. You don't even _know_ him."

"I don't have to," she sighed patiently and stepped closer to him. He flexed his jaw, "it's just a dance Jake. Seriously, it's not a big deal."

"What am I going to do with you?" She gasped when he grabbed her by the belt hooks in her jeans. He tugged her forward and she collided softly against his body, her cheeks burned and he smirked at her as she ducked her gaze, refusing to meet his stare, "you're crazy if you think that I'm going to let that punk kid dance with you again tonight."

She cast a glance to the porch and saw a few people staring at them with interested gazes. Jake could feel their stares too but he just didn't care. And he hoped that Pea-Peirs was watching too. With that in mind he raised his hand to her jaw and turned her face to him, her blue eyes made him feel like he was strung up with electric wires. It was the best sort of tension.

"Don't dance with him, okay? I might end up bruising my knuckles again. He's looking at you way too much and I don't like it."

Sherry bit her lip and nodded. Butterflies fluttered into her throat and she couldn't find the voice to speak, she knew it would come out like a squeak or embarrassingly shaky.

Jake wrapped his arm around her waist. She shivered, and without thinking about it her arms slid around his neck. He smirked and whispered lowly, "did I tell you that you look gorgeous?"

Her cheeks burned some more and she squeaked out a 'yes' and pressed her cheek to his shoulder, looking towards the house and noticing that a bunch of people were not even bothering to hide their staring.

"People are staring," she murmured and turned her face so that the nook between her forehead and her nose was perfectly snuggled into his neck.

"I don't give a fuck," he turned his face slightly, and again the burning started at his hands. Was it the alcohol? He really didn't know, but he thought it was, "let's get back inside. I think they're playing a song I like."

"Are you going to dance?" Sherry wondered as she reluctantly pulled out of his embrace.

"No, that's not my thing, but if you stand near me who knows what might happen," he stated suggestively and began towing her back towards the house, proudly, because he knew that tonight they had reached a new level in whatever 'this' was.

Inside the house the music blared and Sherry followed Jake to the corner of the room. Girls and guys were swaying to the slow music. Sherry began singing softly as Jake slowly shielded her from the vision of everyone else. She smirked as she sang with her back against the wall. Very aware of the way his body was closing in on hers until he was pressed along the length of body.

"I'll give you all of me, give me all of it, I need all of it to myself," she sang softly with the song, Jake had a playful expression in his stare. It caused embers to flicker inside of her stomach and she teasingly bit her lip and continued singing, "Woah, so tell me you love me... only for tonight..."

"Only for tonight," he smirked at her shocked expression. He knew this song by heart, "even though you don't love me. Just tell me you love me. I'll give you what I need, I'll give you all of me."

Boldly he lowered his face to her neck as Sherry gently swayed with him, her eyes closed and she wrapped one arm around his neck, finding it easy as she was on heels. She was no longer aware of herself, only of him and the feel of his muscled body before her, pressed so closely that it was making her skin tingle. Jake shuddered internally at the feel of her pressed along him.

"Bring your love baby, I could bring my shame, bring the drugs baby I can bring my pain. I've got my heart right here, I've got my scars right here…"

"Bring the cups baby I could bring the drink," he rested his hands on her hips tightly, "bring your body baby I can bring you fame, and that's my motherfuckin' words too, so let me motherfuckin' love you."

She sang the chorus again and by now the side of his face was pressed against hers. The alcohol flowing through his system emboldened him to lightly press his lips to her temple. Sherry smiled.

Something had certainly changed between them. She didn't mind.

**…**

It was as the party was winding down that Sheva found Sherry on the couch with Jake. They were laughing about something, or at least Sherry was. Jake was technically not laughing but she knew him well enough to read the humor in his eyes.

"Sherry," she smiled and stopped in front of her, Chris was behind her staring at Jake strangely, "time to go lover."

"Oh, okay no problem." Sherry stood and smiled at Jake, "I'll see you in school."

"How are the two of you getting home?" Chris asked with a hard stare at Sheva.

Sherry looked to her nervously and they held onto each other's arms, "uh…" Sherry started, "we walked here…"

"Are you shitting me?" Jake spluttered before Chris could, "you walked here? In the night? Wearing that!"

"Get your asses in the car," Chris glared as he began walking out the door. Like two scolded children Sherry and Sheva followed him out the door. Jake shut the door with a hard slam as they approached the red car parked on the opposite side of the street. Sherry could feel him burning holes into the back of her head

When they approached the glistening vehicle Jake stepped around and slid into the back while Sheva slid into the front.

It was just as Sherry was about to slide inside the car that she heard Piers calling her name. She turned and smiled at him as he approached her, slowly his run to a jog and breathlessly trying to speak.

"Hey, uh, before you go I wanted to give you my number."

"Oh, uh, yeah sure okay," she pulled out her phone and typed in his name. She hoped he wasn't internally laughing at her stupid cellphne. It was all too embarrassing. But then again, she wasn't all that interested in his opinion at all.

"Okay I've got it."

Piers smiled and waved before running back towards the house where teens were already streaming out and preparing to head home.

When Sherry slid into the car Chris instantly peeled off the road. Jake glared at the side of her face and Sheva babbled to Chris about the things she had seen at the party.

It wasn't until they were close to her home that he finally spoke, unable to leave it alone.

"Did you give him your number?" Jake asked in a controlled voice, and very quietly so that Chris and Sheva, who were very engrossed in their conversation, wouldn't hear. Sherry turned slightly in her seat, noticing how he was at the other side of the car.

"No," she assured him, "why?" She knew why, they both knew that she knew why, but rather than shrug her off he slid closer with a devilish glint in his eye.

Very cautiously he placed his hand at her waist and pulled her a bit against him, no longer caring if Sheva and Chris caught glimpse of them. Sherry's breath was coming out in small but quick successions. He smiled slyly and spoke so that she could hardly hear him, "because if you gave him your number I'd have to go back there and break his fucking phone."

"So violent…" she breathed nervously and felt his breath skating against her lips. She released another shaky breath.

Chris stopped the car as they pulled in front of Sherry's apartment. Jake smirked at Sherry's expectant expression and leaned in to her.

His lips pressed firmly against her jaw and she trembled at the press of his mouth there. The things around her seemed to blur and darken. Then she felt his tongue dart out slightly and tasted the skin of her jaw bone.

Jake pulled back with a satisfied smirk and a darkened gaze just as Chris and Sheva tuned to say goodbye.

"Bye Chris… b-bye Jake." Sherry stuttered and shakily got out of the car. The cool summer air dried his kiss on her skin and she eagerly accepted Sheva's hand. They both took off their heels and gave the boys one last goodbye. They returned it with sly grins and watched the two girls disappear into the home.

"He kissed you didn't he?" Sheva whispered with a smirk at Sherry's flushed countenance.

Sherry nodded once jerkily, "not on the mouth though."

"He's got it bad," Sheva muttered as they both stumbled quietly into Sherry's apartment.

They snuck into her bedroom and collapsed on the bed in a fit of giggles and stupid laughter.

It had been a great night indeed.

"Well," Sheva smiled, "I guess it can be said that you're no longer 'just friends' with Jake, right?"

A sleepy smile graced Sherry's face, "I guess so."

Everyone fell asleep happily that night.

* * *

**Mhm! Do did you all like it? This chapter is pretty long, and there was so much that I wanted to add but i didn't want to make it over the top because that drama is getting saved to carry us into chapter 30. **

**Some of you asked for Piers, and I knew instantly that Jake didn't like Piers haha so I just had to throw in the rivalry. But no, this isn't a Peirs bashing story so... no. **

**Anyway - What did you all think? I know I teased at something weird with Chris but all will come out in time! Furthermore, if you were wondering the song that I listened to while writing the slight (?) dance scene between Jake and Sherry is called Wicked Games by The Weeknd (NO THATS NOT A TYPO) haha.**

**There were a lot of opportunity's to add crazy drama, but I needed to save that for the good stuff that's coming up soon. You guys are hopefully going to be in for a shock. So, review :) this one took me all day!**

**revieww! **


	21. Something Else

**Chapter XXI**

When Monday came Sherry found herself more excited than ever to get to school. She knew that it was Jake Muller's fault, but she wouldn't let herself think that. She tried to cite other reasons for her excitement… like… homework and… pop quizzes...

Since Chris already knew where it was that Sheva was living he picked her and Sherry up. The entire ride over to school Chris drove with a grin on his face and a hand on Sheva's knee. Sherry sat in the back, trying to ignore the memory of Jake and her in the backseat. The way he had touched his lips to her jaw was like a brand on her skin.

When they had arrived at school Sherry's eyes immediately searched out Jake. When she found him leaning casually against his bike she clenched her muscles in an attempt to squeeze out all of the tense excitement building up inside of her. It was like wet rag, only wringing it out would take out all the water.

Chris, Sherry and Sheva made their way out of the car and began approaching Jake who looked up to them from his phone and smiled.

"I was just texting you," he grinned at Sherry, ignoring the knowing look that Sheva and Chris gave one another, "I started wondering if Chris and his cage were going to make you late."

"My car is better than your stupid bike," Chris glared, "besides – you have to obey the traffic laws too."

"But I don't – it's easier to get away with it on a motorcycle," Jake smirked, then he looked to at Sherry who had still not uttered a word and only failed at attempting to look neutral. There was a happy grin on her face.

"Hi," his voice rolled through her.

"Hi," she squeaked, Sheva smirked and began towing Chris towards the school with Jake and Sherry right behind them. Casually Jake slid an arm around her waist and pulled her to his side. She grinned and allowed him to do so.

"How was your weekend?" His question was cocky and she knew it.

"It was great."

"Oh really? What made it so great?"

"I had a great time with this guy," she shrugged, "I'm thinking that I really like him. He's taller than I am, really sweet, kind of funny, a good dancer," she noted, "and he's really intriguing. You might have heard of him, his name is Piers."

Jake glared down at her and she burst into a fit of laughter, "that's not funny."

"I'm sorry," she giggled some more, stopping as he pulled the door open and tugged her inside, still keeping his arm around her, "he is a good dancer though," she grinned.

"No he's not," Jake grumbled, then he smiled a bit slyly, "so which part if what you said applied to me?"

Now she blushed, ducking her gaze slightly and trying to play it off coolly, "none."

"Yeah?" he grinned at her teasing humor, "I'm going to bet that every part was based off of me."

"How haughty," her smile widened.

"Well, I am taller then you. I am pretty nice to you, more than anyone else, and I know you're interested in finding out more about me," his suggestive tone did not escape her, "I'm not a great dancer but I can keep up, plus, I'm funny."

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," she told him, "you're not funny."

"Yeah? Well you can hardly say that Pears is funny with his fucking highlights, there's nothing funny about a grown ass man dyeing his hair."

She laughed wildly, drawing the stare of Chris and Sheva who were walking in front of them some feet away, "his name is _Piers_, and I think they're natural."

"Yeah, as natural as his girly lips," Jake flashed her a grin, "and I made you laugh."

The rest of the day Sherry spent it with thoughts of Jake, she wanted to know random things.

What made him laugh, what made him thoughtful? What made Jake Muller tick? What did he hate the most? What was his favorite color? What was his religion if any? What did he plan to do after high school? What made him fight and party so much? When did it start? What made him truly happy, if anything? What made him truly angry, if not everything?

In gym Sherry and Jake spoke. He watched her with a carefully composed expression, trying to not break out into a grin that she might consider stupid. Everything she did intrigued him, from the way she folded her legs and then casually used her elbow to lean on her upraised knee – then rested her chin in her hand, to the way she seemed to ensure that the topic was never about her.

In lunch Chris and Sheva talked animatedly about the party and Billy admitted that he had decided to spend the night with Rebecca.

"Well that's sweet," Sherry smiled, "I'm glad you found her. She seems like a nice girl."

"She's totally different from anyone else I've met. She doesn't brush me under the rug and she actually listens to me," he smiled and then bit his lip a bit, "I'm just worried that she's going to find someone better than me."

"Don't say things like that. At the end of the day your own insecurities will eat at you and make you say and do things that you don't really mean to do or say. Trust me, I know."

Jake looked at Sherry suspiciously. Once again she had completely intrigued him with her statement. But he knew better then to ask in front of everyone so he said nothing and just eyeballed her suspiciously.

"How was the party?" Billy raked a hand through his dark hair and chewed on his burger quietly, "was it as fun as everyone says?"

"It was great," Jake remarked, casting a dark smile at Sherry, "very eventful."

Sherry nodded, "very fun."

Chris raised a brow and then smirked down at his food. They were so obvious.

**…**

At the end of the day Sherry looked though her locker and carefully put all of her books back into the metal storage. They never gave seniors homework, knowing they weren't going to bother with it, so why even bother bringing her bag home when she knew there was nothing to do?

"Hey," Jake's cool voice came from behind her. She smiled and tuned her head slightly.

"Are you stalking me Jake Muller?"

"Would you be mad if I was?"

She shrugged and shut the locker altogether, when she turned to stare at him she grinned at the sight of him. He was smiling at her all too knowingly, "maybe."

"I don't think you'd complain," he murmured quietly and approached. His hand came up until it rested beside her head. She tried to not let her breath shudder out of her but failed, "I think you'd like it. A good girl like you must have some darker wishes."

"Not me," she shook her head surely, "scouts honor."

Jake smirked and wrapped an arm around her waist and began towing her down the empty hallways and towards the parking lot. Sherry beamed and leaned into his side. He smelled like apples and cinnamon, the most perfect scent she had ever encountered.

When they pushed past the exit doors the smell of pollen assaulted them. Sherry liked it, it felt like a sharp zap at her senses. Tingling them to life. Jake scowled at it and kept his arm around her.

Steve Burnside looked up at them from where he stood smoking with his friends and frowned at the sight of Jake Muller with his arm around the petite blonde. Steve had been eyeballing her appreciatively, and it had escaped no one's sight. Everyone knew that he had a thing for the new girl, whether it was pure lust or not was not known. But everyone knew.

"Hey!" He called out and began walking towards Sherry and Jake. Her blue eyes turned in his direction and Jake Muller swiveled his head stiffly towards the approaching male. His eyes narrowed as he realized that he was talking to them and coming closer.

"Hey," Sherry muttered quietly when Steve was in hearing distance. Sherry was growing nervous. It was no mystery to her that Jake did not like Steve, and it was clear by the daggers that Steve shot in Jake's direction that the feeling was mutual.

"What's up, you're going home?"

"Yeah," she smiled.

"Do you need a ride?" he dared to ask, glaring at Muller who tilted his head very slightly, "I can give you a ride, my car is right over there and I was just about ready to get going any way."

Sherry shook her head slightly, "no thanks, I mean… Jake is going to give me a ride anyway. But really, thank you."

Jake tried to not roll his eyes at the way that she thanked Steve. Inside, he hoped it was not sincere. Unable to hide his annoyance with the situation and Sherry's thankful attitude he rolled his eyes and scoffed.

"Beat it, Burnout," Jake glared, "you're depriving us of oxygen."

"Jake!" Sherry gasped and pulled out of his arm. He smiled at the way Steve scowled.

"I'm just offering her a ride home so that she doesn't have be stuck with your roaring bike. That thing is like a fucking death machine. Sorry for caring."

"You sound like a whiny bitch," Jake countered, narrowing his eyes further, Sherry's bulged, "get the fuck out of my sight."

"Or?" Steve stepped closer, aware that his friends were near and approaching. They sensed a fight, and Sherry did too. Tensely she stepped closer and spoke, not daring to touch either of them for fear of hyping their already agitated personas up.

"Jake, please, let's just go?" She asked quietly, "I have to get home and I am really tired. Let's just go."

"Come near me again and I'll break your goddamn face," he ignored her and continued, "don't talk or look at us, _ever_."

"Nice threat," Steve smirked, "the only reason you talk so much shit is because no one has put you in your place. But I'm going to be the one to do that-

"Jake no!"

Jake grabbed him by his shirt, fisting his hands into the material and yanking him close. Sherry jumped forward and grabbed his shoulder and now Steve's friends were cursing at him and ordering him to let Steve go. They had surrounded them in no time at all. And Steve's toes were the only part of his feet touching the ground. Jake looked eerily calm, although his hands trembled from the grip he had on Steve's shirt.

"Jake please let him go, this is really not worth it," she hated fights. Not only that but she knew that Jake could do some damage. The fact that he wore gloves to hide the injury he had inflicted upon other people's bodies frightened her.

"You're going to do what?" Jake asked with a stony scowl, "are you going to be the one to finally put me down? I've kicked all of your friend's asses two times over. And you think that you're going to be the one to do something?"

"Put him down!" Sherry repeated nervously.

"Look at her, or Chris, or Sheva, or me again and I swear you'll wish you were never born."

Jake dropped Steve to the ground angrily and stepped over his trembling body. Angrily he took Sherry's hand in his and pushed people aside as Steve came to his feet.

Sherry stumbled behind him and looked back, noticing Steve staring in their direction.

When they came to the motorcycle Jake didn't wait, he took Sherry up by the waist and gracefully lifted her onto the motorcycle. When he got on he turned it on and she wrapped her arms around his waist. He could practically feel the anger flowing out of him as she did that, then they were off.

She was scared. And her fright came only from all she had seen before. Fights were not her thing. Self-defense was another story. But seeing Jake like that made her skin crawl. She did know that he was easy to anger, but it never occurred to her that she might witness it being taken to another level.

It made her wonder whether there was more to the story of his hatred for Steve then everyone led on. It was just so intense.

Or maybe he was just intense.

When they got to her house Sherry climbed off the bike wordlessly on trembling legs.

Before she could really get away from him Jake climbed off the motorcycle and went after her. As soon as she pulled out her keys he wordlessly held on to her around the wrist and tugged her away from the door. Without speaking she allowed him to.

They walked a few feet away from the door and then he turned, staring at her intensely.

"What, are you mad at me or something?" His stare was just as strong as the rest of him. There was a nervousness in his eyes that made her think better then to start ranting and raving. Her intuition told her that he did not _want_ her to be angry with him.

"No, Jake, I'm not mad at you."

A small breath left him, but he felt no relief. Just nerves, nerves he had not felt since he was a child and he stole his father's things. He would always be afraid that his father would lash out and yell at him. That's where he thought he left those nerves.

"I just… I didn't like what I saw."

He nodded, clenching his jaw, "I just… I hate that kid. He gets me so fucking mad-

"You can't jump off the handle like that, okay? That's not cool Jake. For all you know he has a weapon somewhere on him, what if you were to get really hurt one day? Do you think about that?"

He shook his head, "he wouldn't be able to hurt me."

"You don't know that Jake," Sherry's voice took an exasperated turn, "you can't always be sure that someone won't take things to another level. Please don't risk your safety on stupid things and people like Steve Burnside."

Jake raised his eyes, not realizing he had lowered them, Sherry ran a hand through her hair and looked off towards the other side of the too sunny street, "don't be scared, alright?"

She bit her lip and nodded shakily.

Carefully he reached out and turned her face back to him. Her eyes were not sad, or scared as he had expected, just stunned, "nothing's gonna' happen to me. Especially not at the hands of Steve Burnside."

"You don't _know_ that."

"I know, but I don't want you to worry. He's stupid, but he'd never do something that's going to put his freedom in danger."

Sherry nodded, accepting his. Jake didn't remove his hands from her face and she grew nervous again. Would he kiss her? Did she want him to? She could imagine what his kisses were like, she had gotten a bit of a kiss the other day. She shivered as he came nearer and bent his face to her.

With one hand around her jaw Jake bent her face to the side and kissed her half on the cheek and half on the ear. She shivered at the touch of his lips and tried to ignore the way that heat pooled between her thighs at his breath on her skin. Would he always tease her like this?

"See you tomorrow Sherry," he smiled softly and pressed his lips once more to the skin right on her face and nearest to her ear.

"See you," she breathed.

Jake smirked at the sound of her voice and moved away from her. She watched him get on his bike and then he took off. Sherry's eyes had gone droopy from the sensation of his lips on her face.

Sherry marched up the stairs happily and went into her apartment. Instantly she dropped by to see her father and waved hello to Jill.

Kissing her father on the cheek she was determined to spend the entire day with him. He looked sickly again, and it worried her. It saddened her.

"Sherry," her father murmured that night when they lay together and watched the Ace Ventura rerun, "you know how much I love you."

Instantly her body stilled, "of course dad," her eyes watered slightly and began to burn. She blinked them all back. She knew where this was going. She'd had this conversation with him way too many times. _Way too many times… _

"Honey, you know that soon I'm going to go…" his tired eyes blurred with his own tears and he held her a bit closer. Her body began to tremble beside his, "you're going to be okay Sherry. I know how strong you are. I've seen it. I know that you're going to be a fine young woman and you're going to take care of yourself. You're responsible."

"Dad," she croaked and shook her head, "please don't tell me this."

"I need to Sherry, I can feel the life leaving my body." His statement made her stiffen again, "I know that it's almost time."

She shut her eyes and took calming breaths.

William's blue eyes shut too as he trembled. He would start to cry soon, the thought of leaving her terrified him.

"Please… when I'm gone go to Mr. Wesker. Even if just for a few days, okay? Just… don't stay here all alone."

Sherry nodded, "okay dad. I'll stay with him for a few days."

"And cremate me. I don't want you to have a memorial of my dead body still on earth. Cremate me and throw me to sea-

"Dad-

"Please?" He begged.

Sherry shuddered and nodded again, "Okay dad."

Sighing he rubbed her arm soothingly, hoping she wouldn't hate him when everything was all said and done, "I love you Sherry. You've been the only joy in my entire life. The only person that has given me meaning. I can't express to you how happy you've made me. I am so proud of you sweetheart."

Sherry bit her lip and tightly wrapped her arms round her father's waist.

She had never thought the day would come when he would tell her so fully that his death was approaching. Her heart throbbed painfully and she steeled her will and shut her eyes tighter, to the point where it almost hurt. She wouldn't cry.

"I love you too daddy."

* * *

**:( Things aren't looking too good.. **

**So - I have an awesome confrontation planned out for the coming chapters :)**

**Review? :)**


	22. Up & In

**Chapter XXII**

The next day at school Sherry was emotionally empty. Her smile was still in place but it was on the verge of falling apart at every second. It occurred to her that she should really have taken the day off. But in the end she had gotten herself up out of bed and practically fell down the stairs from lack of enthusiasm.

In class Mr. Kennedy gave her a strange look and then asked her if she needed to go to the nurse. She said yes but only went to the bathroom to read. After a while she came out and resumed her classes.

When she entered the gym she changed with sluggish energy. Her eyes were drawn to the metal of her locker.

Eventually she exited to the actual gym, in a daze she walked, the floor glistened back at her and for a moment she stopped and stared. Only when a hand fell onto her shoulder did she snap out of it in a frightened daze.

"You okay?" Jake stared down at her with a wary glance, "you seem out of it."

"What? No, I'm fine," Sherry laughed him off easily and he nodded, believing her, "how are you?"

"I'm good, I wanted to ask you something though, you know how there is this carnival thing coming up right?"

"Yeah," Sherry had heard all about it starting with when Rebecca had commented on it, "this weekend right?"

"Friday night actually," Jake smirked, "I was wondering you were coming. If you don't go I'm not going to bother."

Sherry smiled a bit, "I have to ask… my dad might not be so crazy about the idea but I'll do my best to convince him to let me go."

Jake snaked his arm around her waist and pulled her in close, a warm tingle went up her spine and stopped just at her neck, he lowered his mouth to her ear, "if you don't go am I forbidden from hanging out on your fire escape again?"

"No, you're not," her eyes flickered over to the gym teacher who was scowling in their general direction, stifling a giggle and pulling out of Jake's arms she stared up at him, "but text me next time. I don't want to be alerted to your presence by hearing you falling off of the fire escape. I still can't figure out how you even got up there you know?"

"It wasn't that hard."

"Right," she laughed and walked to one of the basketball nets, "you're a ninja?"

"Damn, you're good."

Lunch passed without incident. Chris tried to kiss Sheva too deeply as usual, and Sheva modestly pushed him away. Billy went on and on about Rebecca and Sherry participated actively in conversation, Jake stared at her the whole time.

It wasn't just because she drew his eye like a magnet, it was because she had a strange demeanor about her. Her laughter seemed strained, it almost made him want to flinch. She wouldn't even really meet his gaze half the time, and when she did she'd toss him a tired looking smile.

It was irritating him.

When the day was over Sherry put her books away at her locker. Not listening to the kids around her at all.

She was thinking about her father. She couldn't help it anymore. It was a subject that she couldn't ignore. It occurred to her that all of her efforts to maintain normalcy were crumbling around her. She literally didn't have the energy anymore.

"Hey," the voice made her wince. He was the last person she wanted to talk to.

Turning around Sherry put on a calm smile, "hi Steve."

He beamed at how she looked at him and spoke, "what's up Sherry?"

"Just getting ready to head home, the usual." _What else? _She thought a bit sarcastically.

"Oh, is Muller giving you a ride home? I was hoping to maybe walk you. I mean I get how it might be a little weird to just ask you to get in my car. I figured you'd be more comfortable if I walked you home…" He tossed his hair slightly out of his eye, "if you want to of course."

"Well, Jake is usually my ride home. I'd hate to leave him waiting, you know?"

Steve frowned slightly and nodded, "I get it, but I don't get why you're friends with him, he's such a mean guy Sherry. I mean … seriously did you see what he did to me?"

She nodded, "I know, but Jake is just… I don't know. Jake is just an intense guy, I'd just keep out of his way."

Steve nodded sheepishly and then looked down at her hand, slowly he reached out and touched her fingertips. She jerked her hand away from his reach and frowned. He returned it with confusion, "Sherry-

"Steve, I get that you want to be nice to me. Really, I do," taking a deep breath she continued, "but I'm really just not interested in being anything else other than friends with you, okay?"

Steve frowned and crossed his arms, "you don't know that yet. You hardly know me-

"And you hardly know me."

"Is this because of Jake Muller? Has he told you something? What did he tell you?"

"He didn't tell me anything Steve," her voice became a bit quieter with its frustration, "please just respect this-

"Fine, whatever," he said, angrily. The words escaped him venomously, "when he breaks your heart don't come running to me."

"Why in the world would I come running to you?" She crossed her arms with frustration and glared at him, "I don't want anything with you anymore after what you just said. Now, if you'd excuse me."

Sherry moved by him easily, not missing the way he glared at her and began making her way out of the school. She hoped that Jake was already there, she didn't want to have to wait. She just wanted to get out of here. She needed to be home.

When she got outside she easily spotted Jake beside his bike, texting away.

She hurried over to him and when he looked up he began to frown. Her steps were hurried, rushed as if she were trying to get away from something, and as she came closer he noticed Steve coming out of the school and casting Sherry a glare. He linked two and two together.

"Hey," he placed his hands on her shoulders, holding her firmly in place as she trembled slightly, "are you okay?"

"Yes," she squeaked, "can you please just take me home? I just want to go home. I feel sick." It wasn't really a lie. She did truly feel sick to her stomach. Jake didn't believe her and raised his hands to her jaw, holding her face up to him.

"What happened? Did Steve say something to you?" She began to shake her head but he wasn't having it, he didn't believe her. The fact that Steve came out after her and was looking at her like if she had slapped him or something made it very clear that something had transpired between the two of them. Before Jake could begin to stomp off towards Steve Sherry had her hand wrapped around his wrist, pulling him back to her and then hugging him tightly. His breath caught in his throat as she pressed her face against his chest.

Something was really wrong.

"Sherry-

"Let's go, please Jake I just need to get out of here, please?"

He cast a stony glare in Steve Muller's direction, not missing the way that Sherry's arms were tightening around him as if just standing here was getting harder.

"Fine, let's go, but I expect you to tell me everything at some point."

**…**

When Sherry got to her apartment she gave Jake a small wave and escaped into her apartment silently. Jake stood outside for a long time, wondering why she hadn't lingered as she usually did. He began to wonder if Steve had told her something about him, but that couldn't have been it. She had asked him for a ride, surely if something was wrong and she didn't want anything to do with him she wouldn't have done that, right?

She was confusing the hell out of him.

Jake went home and saw his father briefly. They discussed the day and Jake laughed when his father told him that he had to fire an 'incompetent fool'. Albert Wesker scowled at his son in response.

That night however the mood turned sour.

"Have you given college any more thought?" Albert Wesker asked. They sat before one another with the granite countertop between them in the center of the kitchen.

"Not really," Jake huffed, annoyed that his father was bringing up the conversation again, "you know that I want to take a year off and then figure out what I want to do."

"That is a waste of time. You cannot expect to figure out what your aspirations are by sitting on a couch watching television all day. I am sorely tempted to break all the televisions in this home. Perhaps that will get you thinking about something that is useful to your future."

Jake rolled his eyes, "I don't know what I want to do."

"Then go to a college and sign that you are undetermined. Gather some knowledge while you are waiting to make up your mind."

"That's just useless. I don't want to learn general information that I don't give a fuck about."

Albert looked up from his newspaper and glared at his son. The tenacity was clear on his face, and while Albert Wesker had often thought his son to be very much like him, and had admired it, it did nothing but annoy him now, "you can always work in the lab. You have the intelligence—

"Not my thing."

"Get out of my sight," Albert ordered instantly, "I am sick and tired of discussing the same thing with you. If you do not make a decision by the time that this school year is over expect to get a job or live on the street like a vagrant."

Jake smirked at his threat and stood from the chair and then began making his way up to his room. Only when he was out of sight from his father did he clench his jaw and violently curse under his breath, hoping his father heard him.

He knew all about his father, he knew that his eyes were strangely colored because he was something other than human. He knew that his father had more strength than he would ever use, he knew that his father was especially intelligent. Jake was also aware that his father wanted him to take over his company when they day came for him to pass.

In his room Jake stared at his ceiling with rage. Every single time his father brought up the subject of what he would do after High School a million possibilities ran through his head.

He was good at everything, and nothing made him passionate. Science was easy, math was predictable, English was not captivating, and art was not his forte.

So what then?

His phone began to vibrate at around 10:00. When he looked he noticed Sherry's name lighting up the phone in bold black lettering, the message read a simple, **Hey!** He answered instantly, and then felt embarrassed knowing that he was so excited to answer.

**Hey yourself. **

She responded after a few moments, **what are you doing? I kind of want to see you.**

This shocked him, instantly he replied with a, **can I call you for a second?**

She told him yes and he dialed.

Sherry picked up on the third ring with a soft, "Hey Jake…"

"Sherry? Is everything okay?"

She paused for a long time, in her room she fidgeted with the ankle of her sock, and bit her lip, "yeah. I was just hoping that I could see you… I just need to see you."

The words made him grin despite the solemn tone she used. Instantly he stood from his bed and began changing his clothing. He changed into his plaid pajama pants and a black T-Shirt as he spoke, "am I allowed to climb into your bedroom window again?"

"Yes," she laughed, "but don't think that you're spending the night like last time, it's a school night. And I expect you to be a responsible young man," she joked as he continued changing.

"I'll be over there in a few minutes, do you want me to bring you something to eat? I'm thinking I want some Chinese food."

"I'll pay you when you get here okay?"

"Fuck that," he chuckled and threw on his combat boots, "what do you want?"

Sherry told him what she wanted and then he hung up. Jake jogged down the stairs excitedly and slipped out of the house. The entire ride over to her apartment was one of anxious glee. It bubbled up from places he really didn't know existed inside of him before.

"I'm such a fucking idiot," he muttered under the roar of the bike.

When he stopped in front of her place he noticed that she had tossed down the ladder of her fire escape. Hooking the Chinese food over his arm he began to climb up and made his best attempt to be quiet. Hoping to shock her once he got up there.

Upon reaching the top he carefully peeked through the window and smirked at the sight of her.

Sherry was wearing little blue shorts, exposing her petite legs and her lean thighs. She wore a thin white tank top and glasses, she was reading a book, and by the looks of it it was something by John Steinbeck. She was nervously biting her thumb.

As if she sensed him she looked up and clapped a hand over her mouth to keep from shrieking. He grinned in response and Sherry quickly ran to the window and opened it.

"You scared me so badly," she whispered as he leaned down and stared at her face to face, "don't do that."

"Well you just looked so into your book, I didn't want to disturb you."

Blushing Sherry stepped back and allowed him entry into the bedroom.

He landed with a soft thud and handed her the food, Sherry thanked him and set it on the bed. As she did so he quickly admired her backside and when she turned it was her small and perky breasts, _this is going to be a long fucking night, _he thought quietly and walked closer to her.

"I like your PJ's," she smirked, noticing the plaid dark red pants he had on and the way he tucked them into his boots, "cute."

"Cute?" he frowned and stopped in front of her, dwarfing her in size and then narrowing his gaze, "wrong thing to say little girl."

"What in the world are you going to do about that?" She crossed her arms and playfully tilted her chin up at him, "I'll beat you up Jake Muller."

"You wish," he rolled his eyes and she smiled, then began to take out the food, "so where's Sheva?"

"She's actually coming home a little late today. She's got some private stuff to handle, I don't know too much about it but I didn't want to pry," handing him his food and taking her own Sherry climbed onto the bed, patting the spot next to her so that he could join her.

Jake climbed in and took off his boots. When he finally settled in beside her he began to ask her questions.

"So, why did you need to see me?"

Sherry stiffened at the question and chewed for a little bit. He noticed but said nothing, instead he looked down at his food and chewed quietly too, patiently waiting for an answer. Distinctly, he heard what sounded like a television two rooms away.

"I just…" she swallowed, "I need to have you here. I've just been going through some things and…"

"Like what?"

"I can't tell you."

"Can't or won't?" The question prompted a bit of annoyance from within him. He wanted to know what it was that had her so wound up. And the fact that she was hiding it from him, thinking he didn't notice was driving him to the point of madness.

"Won't," she answered honestly, looking at him as he frowned, "it's not that I don't trust you. It's just that… do you know how when you talk about certain things you start to cry? Uncontrollably?"

"No," his honest response made her smile, "but I get what you're saying."

But he didn't. Not at all. And they both knew it.

_What's so bad that it would make her cry? _

The thought of all the things that could have been going wrong in her life made his hands shake a bit with anger, he shifted to try and hide it from her gaze. She was too inquisitive for her own good, and he knew that she would see through him if she hadn't already.

"You should tell me, whatever it is that has you so upset."

"I can't do that. It's just… I just want you here. Okay?"

Jake nodded, happy to hear that on some level, "I understand. Now, what can I do for you?"

Biting her lip nervously Sherry looked to the door of her bedroom and set her food on the nightstand, "can you just stay with me for a little while tonight? I don't want you to feel like I'm using you or anything," she looked at him pleadingly, "please don't think that-

"I don't think that."

"I just need you here with me, you always make me feel a bit better, in weird ways."

She didn't miss the small smile that he tried to hide, he spoke and reaching over her he placed his food onto the nightstand too, her breath caught at how his body stretched over her, "I'd rather be here anyway. My dad's been on my case again."

Sherry pulled the covers over her legs and Jake did the same, noticing how she watched him intently, "what happened?"

"He's fucking going on and on about college. This and that. How I will be wasting time if I just sit at home thinking about what it is that I want to do. When what I want to do is nothing at all. I don't have any aspirations and he doesn't get that."

"Well you must like _something_…"

"I don't like anything," he rolled his eyes and continued, "Maybe I'll just be a fucking mercenary."

"Jake," Sherry admonished him. The thought of him risking his life solely for money scared her as much as it annoyed her, "do you take your life so lightly?"

"It's not even that big a deal, I'm half-joking anyway."

"Well that's not funny! She whispered loudly, "death isn't funny. And especially not just for money, okay? I mean, do you see what Sheva's going through because Chris is going to risk his life… for an actual cause, not just for money. He loves this country and wants nothing more than to protect it. Can you imagine what that would do to your dad? Or Chris? He loves you Jake!"

"Sherry-

"And what about Billy? Or Sheva? Or me?" Her voice was becoming a bit strained in his ears and to her too.

Jake watched her for a long moment warily. Her eyes were huge and her face was turning red. Did she really care that much? The question ran over and over in his head.

"Sorry," he muttered and crossed his arms with discomfort, "I didn't… I just—

"Please don't say think like that," she whispered and shook her head, "I can't hear you say things like that… you're worth more than just money. Okay?"

He nodded uncomfortably. Sherry nodded and quietly slipped deeper down to the mattress. Hesitantly Jake joined her as she reached for a remote like device and pressed a few buttons. The lights turned off and suddenly they were engulfed in darkness.

Jake lay staring at the ceiling and Sherry stared up at him nervously. Had she gone too far? She wondered.

"Jake?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you mad at me?" Her voice was so small that he looked to her with trepidation, hoping to not find tears in her eyes and relieved when he found nothing but worry. Smiling he turned onto his side until he was facing her and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her closely.

"No."

She breathed a small breath of relief which hit his shirt and managed to warm the skin right underneath it, "okay… I just care about you."

"I know," he rested his head on the top of her head, very aware of how she was lightly snaking her arm around his waist and stroking his shoulder blade soothingly, "I do too."

"You care about yourself too? She joked, snickering a bit, "that's good to know Jake."

Grinning Jake pulled her a bit tighter until her breasts were touching his chest, _I better not get hard. I swear to God… _he thought with annoyance and pleasure, "you know what I mean."

"I know," she smiled, pleased to know that he shared her feelings.

It took some time before the both of them dozed off. Jake fell asleep first and in that time Sherry listened to his even breathing and only once looked up to make sure he was indeed asleep. And when she did she smiled and snuggled back into his chest and slept.

**…**

At some point in the night Jake woke up. Sherry's thigh was slightly nestled in between his legs and he fought the urge to stay locked that way. But when he realized it was almost 6 in the morning he quietly slipped out of the bed, smirking when Sherry muttered a sleepy protest and rolled over, going back to sleep.

"Too cute for your own good," he chuckled and looked out the window. The sun was slowly tinting the sky orange. He had to get home.

Silently Jake went to his boots and slipped them on. Then he noticed the Chinese food still on the nightstand so he walked over and picked that up. But then he noticed something glinting slightly from inside the slightly opened drawer of the nightstand.

Jake carefully leaned over and cast a look to Sherry, she was facing him. Her hair was messy, her cheek was slightly reddened from where it had been crushed up on his chest the entire night and her lips were parted open very slightly.

_I shouldn't look, _he thought as he looked down into the slightly opened drawer again, _but what is that? _

It was glinting and clearly round in shape.

Running a hand through his hair he pulled open the drawer carefully and frowned down at the coin. It sat amongst gloves and scarves and little bottles of perfume.

Jake frowned as he looked at it, not daring to pull it out from where it was, when his eyes adjusted to the dark, he realized with shock what it was.

_What the fuck? _

Jake's brow furrowed with confusion as he looked towards Sherry, she was still sleeping soundly. He looked back down at the coin. It was colored slightly gold and it had an engraving that read _1 Year Recovery_. Then he noticed other blue and green and white coins, smaller in size that read _1 Month Sober_.

Shutting the drawer and grabbing the Chinese food Jake started making his way towards the window and climbed out in a hurry. He shut the window behind him and climbed down the fire escape. He walked into an alleyway and threw out the Chinese food before making his way back to his bike and mounting it.

As it roared to life he cast a glance up at the window and noticed Sherry's figure making its way to the window. She must have heard him leaving. She smiled as she looked down at him and he tossed a nod, she waved and tiredly rubbed her eyes.

Jake waved and made his way back home… all the way there all he kept thinking about were the chips in her drawer that seemed to indicate that there was more to Sherry than he thought. A lot more.

* * *

**:o**

**uh... ok... Something fishy is going on...**  
**So whats going on?**

**Well... I know, but you don't. Want to find out?**

**Drop me a review and I'll see what I can do for you in the next chapter? Eh? eh? :) **

**Can't wait to see what you guys and gals think!**


	23. Penetrate

**Chapter XXIII**

Jake could hardly focus on what the teacher was saying to the class. It's not that he didn't want to focus on the words, it's that he _couldn't_. But he wished he could, he'd rather not be stuck within his own head as he was at the moment. Tapping his finger restlessly against the notebook on his desk Jake gave a heavy sigh.

_Maybe the coin things aren't hers? _He reasoned from where he at with a concentrated look and a furrowed brow, _it's possible that they aren't hers._

_But who the fuck gives away those types of things to someone else? They're supposed to be personal, they're supposed to be a reminder of your sobriety. So why would anyone give it away._

_Maybe she found them? _

But that didn't make sense either, he knew that. After all there were multiple coins in her drawer. If there had been just one it would have been a different story. But no, that's not what he had found.

Sighing heavily Jake put in his ear phones discreetly and tapped his foot to the rhythm of the music, Penetrate by Godhead, he nodded along to the rhythm and focused on the lyrics to the best of his ability.

_I've got nothing to penetrate, and I've got nothing to elevate. I can't seem to concentrate, 'cause I've got nothing to consecrate. _

When class was over he stalked through the hallways and briefly spotted Sheva, she smiled and nodded at him and he returned it.

The rest of the classes past in the same manner as his first and when he was changing in gym he thought about asking Sherry about her past… in the most discrete manner possible. If she suspected something she'd probably not tell him a thing, and that's not what he wanted.

When she came out of the girls locker room Jake smiled in her direction, Sherry skipped over to him happily, "what's up Jake?"

"Nothing much," he answered simply, his eyes were on the gym teacher who was about to blow her whistle, "I think today we get to go outside. Finally, we get to get out of this fucking place."

"That'd be nice," Sherry agreed with a small smile.

It turned out that Jake was right about his suspicions. The gym teacher announced with a glare that today they would go outside and jog around the football field. The kids shouted with joy and she scowled at them in turn.

Jake and Sherry followed the throng of kids outside to the football field and for the first time since the class had started he looked at her directly, "how'd you sleep?"

"I slept well," Sherry smiled, "and you?"

"Fine," _would have had a good morning too had I not seen what I saw in your drawer, _he added silently, "so, why exactly did you move here?" He asked her quietly, hoping to sound like nothing but a curious person. She frowned with confusion and smirked, "just curious."

"Well," she smiled, "it was time for a change."

"Yeah, but parents don't usually pack all of their stuff up and move to another place just because they got bored of their location, especially not when their kid is in their senior year."

"Well we did," Sherry shrugged, a bit put off by his line of reasoning. He was much too inquisitive, and even his stare seemed to peer into her. As if she were a sheer fabric, "it was just time to move."

"Do you have any family here?"

"No, my dad has a friend here... I met him, he's kind of weird. All serious and business like," Sherry shrugged, "he's a doctor. Something like that…"

Now Jake grew more curious, "so your dad only has one friend here? Is that why you guys moved out here?"

"No…" She frowned a bit, growing annoyed, "Jake, is it really that important to know about my past?"

"Yes," he answered a bit snappily as they came onto the fake grass of the football field, Sherry stared out at the back of the head of the student in front of her with a bit of a glare. It was not meant for that person, he knew, it was really meant for him, "I don't know shit about you."

"And I don't know anything about you," her head swiveled in his direction, "so I guess we're even."

Jake clenched his jaw with annoyance and removed his gaze from her.

She was so frustrating. Even if she didn't mean to be. And the more he thought about her the more annoyed he became, not because she was annoying him directly but because she was clearly not telling him things about herself on purpose.

"You're real wound up, you know that?"

Sherry's gaze snapped up to him with astonishment, "what?"

"You think that by avoiding the past that you're keeping me out and that it'll make me stop asking you shit," Jake's gaze rose to the sky as they walked side by side, the throng of people had started separating. Some were going to play football, others to lounge around and pretend to be exercising, Jake and Sherry would walk the length of the entire football field it seemed. He lowered his gaze to her and continued, "You're only making me more curious."

"You shouldn't pry when people don't want you to," she muttered and lowered her gaze.

Jake thought about that for a long moment. Was that really how she felt? Would she not accept a helping hand or a willing listener? And if she didn't want this, why?

"Is that what you really want? To be left alone with no one to talk to?"

Sherry shrugged a bit and stuffed her hand into her pockets, "I just think certain things are better left unsaid Jake. Certain things do no one any good."

"What's so bad about your life that you can't tell me even a minor detail?"

Sherry stopped walking and so did he. Kids walked around them with annoyance and he, for a moment, thought that Sherry might curse. She looked pink enough to do that. But he couldn't be entirely sure that it was out of anger. The sun was shining directly on pretty her face.

"Do you want to be a detective?" Sherry asked quietly.

"What?"

"It seems you want to be a detective," she reasoned logically, crossing her arms, "you keep asking me questions about my past when just last night we were sitting next to each other having a mildly normal conversation. And yet here you are now. You've done a complete 180. When I called you yesterday I told you I needed you there, I didn't explain to you why, and you accepted that, despite your obvious annoyance. You accepted it," she balled her little fist and he raised a brow, "and now here you are _prying_. Or trying to. What brought all of this on?"

There was a sudden flash in her eyes and she looked down at her feet nervously. Her stomach tightened.

"Did someone tell you something?"

"Is there anything to tell?" Jake retorted, even more interested as her demeanor had changed within a matter of seconds from annoyed to apprehensive, "Sherry?"

"It's nothing Jake… Please…" she sighed, not knowing how to phrase it, "some things are best left unsaid. Okay?"

He nodded a bit stiffly and for the rest of the gym class they remained in an awkward silence.

Come lunchtime Sherry was sitting with Sheva. Sheva told her that she had gone to visit her parents, as she checked in on them from time to time.

"What happened?" Sherry asked with interest. Shea didn't look to happy as she began.

"Well they wanted to know whom I was staying with, I told them a friend and left it at that. I don't want them showing up to your house acting like lunatics. Then they wanted to know if I was still with Chris, when I told them yes they flipped out and started cursing. All that jazz," Sheva rolled her eyes and then cast Sherry a sad look, "then I went to Chris' apartment for a while and he told me that he started mailing all of his stuff to the army recruitment centers… he's set to leave in a couple of months basically."

"Oh Sheva," Sherry gave her a hug as the brunette began to tremble the slightest bit, "I know that it'll be hard for you but don't worry, Chris is going to be alright."

"I just can't help feeling that maybe…" Sheva wiped a falling tear as she pulled away from Sherry, "maybe I'm just not that important to him, you know?"

"It's a logical thought but Sheva, it's just not the truth," Sherry shook her head, "he loves you so much. So, so, much."

"I know, I'm just being… a nervous wreck," she laughed a bit, "Shit," Sheva wiped the last stray away from her cheeks, "they're coming."

The boys were at the table in no time and Chris grinned at Sheva proudly as he showed off the stamped **A** on his essay, "Tolstoy ain't got shit on me," He proclaimed as Sheva laughed and pecked him on the cheek.

Jake continued to watch Sherry suspiciously the entire time that she conversed animatedly with Billy, Chris and Sheva. Billy informed them that Rebecca would like to join them at the carnival on Friday night, Jake instantly told them all that he thought they should meet around 9, to which they all agreed.

"Sherry, you're going right?" Chris asked.

"I'm going to do my best," she stated sincerely, "are there going to be a lot of people there?"

"Hell yeah," Billy nodded, "it's like… one of the biggest things that we do around here. It's pretty fun. Although, I recommend that you don't make any promises about what time you'll get home."

Sherry stared to Jake with confusion.

"It usually runs a bit later than just the usual 'eleven o'clock' thing." He explained, "Usually people get out of there at like… three in the morning."

"What in the world could you be doing at a carnival until three in the morning?" Sherry stated with amazement.

Jake chuckled at her, and Sheva tossed Chris a knowing look, "the carnival closes at 11:30. But that doesn't mean _we_ leave."

"I'll be seeing you there then." The voice did not come from the table.

They all looked up with instant annoyance towards Excella who stood in front of a smaller girl. She was looking at Jake with a clever smile, "I couldn't possibly miss a chance to see you there. You hardly go out anymore," she continued, Jake scowled, "I can't wait to see you there. Although," she tossed a disdainful look at Sherry and Sheva, "I can't say the same thing about your little kittens."

Sheva instantly riled up and glared, "Excella is their running water in your house?"

"What kind of stupid question is that?" the dark haired woman glared past Sherry's head to Sheva, "of course."

"It didn't seem like there was. You're so thirsty for dick it's a miracle you haven't died of dehydration."

"Sheva!" Sherry gasped, admonishing her.

Chris snickered as Excella gaped for a retort. A girl behind her stepped out and glared at Sheva. Her blonde hair was shoulder length and her voice made Sherry flinch as she spoke, "that's funny coming from you Sheva."

Sheva raised a brow and fisted her hands against the table, "how so?"

"Well," the girl licked her lips, "you're parents are from like... Africa or something-

This time Chris didn't jump in fast enough to stop Sheva.

"Motherfu-

Jake jumped up from the table as Sheva shoved past Excella. Instantly there was a chaotic whirlwind of motion as Sheva grabbed hold of the blonde girl's hair and pulled her violently against a wall.

"Sheva stop!" Sherry ran at her, stumbling up from the table and almost falling.

Sheva's forearm was crushed up against the blonde throat as Jake and Chris grabbed her by the elbows and pulled her back. The blonde collapsed to the tile and Sheva managed to somehow release herself as she flew at her again, her eyes wild with rage.

"Sheva stop!" Sherry flew at them now as teachers began to run through the bodies of students who were surrounding them and watching with nervousness and excitement as Sheva mounted the small girl and punched her once on the side of the arm as the small girl struggled to defend herself.

Sherry pulled at Sheva and Chris helped her with a tenacious grip on the brunette's arm, hauling her up to her feet and away from the girl on the floor who was sobbing and cursing. Excella was watching with a wide eyed stare as Sheva fought against Chris angrily and he struggled to calm her. Sherry trembled as the teachers finally made it through the body of students.

"That girl!" the sobbing girl yelled, stabbing a finger in Sheva's direction, her squeaky voice annoyed the hell out of Sherry and with all the energy pulsing around her she became angry as she continued to lay blame upon Sheva, "she started it! I didn't even do anything! I just said something—

"You were being an ignorant idiot!" Sherry threw back at her, her little body quaking, Chris held Sheva tightly as tears sprung into her vision from the adrenaline, "she made a statement that was…" Sherry shook her head with disbelief as the teachers looked at her curiously, "uncalled for."

"Mr. Redfield," Mr. Kennedy broke through the crowd, his eyes were on Sheva who was shaking "take Miss Alomar to my room, and Miss Gionne please take this girl to the nurse."

"Yes, Mr. Kennedy," Excella ducked her head and quickly pulled the blonde girl by the arm through the group of people, Sherry noticed a welt forming on her forehead and winced away from the sight. Chris tugged Sheva who seemed suddenly drained of energy through the crowd.

Mr. Kennedy tossed Sherry a concerned look as Jake and Billy stood at her shaking sides, "Sherry are you alright?"

"Y-yeah, just shaken up," she admitted with a trembling laugh, "I think I just need to get some fresh air."

"That sounds good, Jake, Billy," he looked to the two males, "take yourselves outside, all of you. I'm sure you can all use the air." They all nodded and picked up their things off the table. Sherry grabbed Sheva's bag and Jake took Chris's essay and his bag.

"That was insane," Billy muttered as they all strode out of the lunchroom. All the eyes of the cafeteria were on them as they made their exit.

"Very," Jake agreed as they exited to the hallway, briefly they heard what sounded like yelling from down the hall. The squeaky quality of the voice told Sherry that it was the blonde girl from before, still wailing.

"Who was that girl?" Sherry frowned.

"Ashley Graham," Billy told her, "she thinks she's hot shit all because her father is the president of some company. Like if anyone gives a shit."

"She's disgusting to say something like that to Sheva."

Jake muttered an agreement as they broke out into the fresh air. He noticed Sherry was still trembling slightly and as they took a seat on the steps outside the school he tentatively reached out and touched her knee. She looked up at him with wonder.

"You okay?" He knew that she didn't like fights. He already knew how nervous they got her, and it made him more curious.

"I'm okay, thank you… for asking, I mean."

He smirked and leaned in close, "you saved the day again."

"Did I?" Sherry looked down at his lips briefly, "I don't think I did."

"I think you did," his lips were at her ear, she shivered and Billy was too busy texting away about the fight to notice, "I've got to say, angry look really good on you." A shiver rocked through her as his lips brushed at her ear.

Biting her lip until it numbed she nodded. His breath was tickling her and his hand, the one on her knee tightened a small bit and his voice darkened, stilling her breathing.

"But I don't ever want to see that again."

Sherry blinked with confusion.

"Don't ever put yourself in the middle of a fight to separate someone, you don't even know how to fight, what makes you think that that was a smart thing to do?" His hand slipped around her waist and he pulled her in a bit closely until his lip was fully pressed against her ear, "if one of them had hurt you I don't know what I'd fucking do."

Sherry shivered wickedly and nodded, heat flashed up her neck and warmed her face, "I won't do that… anymore."

"Good," he smirked and bit her earlobe gently, chuckling darkly as she leaned into him and tried to keep her composure as he teased her, "and I fully expect you to do whatever you have to in order to make it to the carnival."

"I don't know.. Jake my dad…" she started to shake her head.

Resting his head slightly on her shoulder he continued to nibble on her earlobe, catching it between his teeth and grinning as she released a hard breath, "please?" he purred gently against her ear, "sneak out if you have to…" _break the rules… _

"Jake…"

He used his teeth to create more pressure on her earlobe, releasing waves of endorphins in her brain. And something else that she had not felt in a long time. "Sneak out, _Chérie_…" he coaxed her, fully aware of the way she shivered at the nickname, "I've got to see you."

She responded in a quiet murmur, "I'll see what I can do…"

He released her earlobe from his mouth and pulled her down until she lay against the concrete with her head on his arm, Billy texted away.

Jake smirked as Sherry held onto his head as it rested somewhere beside her head, the clouds passed by slowly, hypnotizing her as Jake let her play absent mindedly with her fingers.

_Let's see how bad a good girl can be... _he thought, shutting his eyes and releasing a ghostly smirk.

* * *

**Oh Jake, you rascal you.. **

**And of course this is about to get 30X more complicated as we are approaching chapter 30, I like to do 'big' chapters when they are multiples of Ten. so. :) Pwepare ya' self. **

**And also, there will most certainly be revelations in the coming chapters about Miss Birkin. And yes - I went there. I added Ashley (she annoys the HELL out of me). **

**So. Review, tell me what you think is going on with Sherry O_o Any ideas? **


	24. Not Just a Girl

**Chapter XXIV**

Sherry watched her father on Wednesday before she went to school with wary eyes. He was looking worse, and worse. His breathing was shallow and his chest rose and fell with shaky breaths.

"He doesn't look good," Sherry murmured to Jill as the woman adjusted him on the bed with ease and expertise, "I think I should stay home –

"Sherry no," Jill shook her head, "your father wouldn't want that. Not only that but I'm here, things will be fine. If anything I'll call his doctor so that he'll come and look at him, in fact I'll do that right now, okay? But you can't miss school."

"But what if something happens?" Sherry bit her lip nervously and shifted from foot to foot, her father did not seem aware of what was going on around him, and as much as she wanted to wake him up she didn't have the heart to. He seemed to be asleep, but she couldn't be too sure.

"Everything will be fine Sherry, now go to school," Jill smiled at the girl.

Sherry nodded and went to her room to get her bag. In there, Sheva lay on the bed with a small frown on her face.

"I'm going to school, do you want me to bring you anything on my way back home?"

Sheva looked to Sherry with a small smile, "bring me Chris."

Sherry laughed bid her farewell.

**…**

Jake tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for Sherry outside. He told her he would drive her to school today. He had arrived early, so he knew that he had no right to be impatient. But he just wanted to see her.

When the door to her apartment building opened Jake was almost certain that he was going to grab her and kiss her until she bruised. Sherry had her hair in an unusual messy style, he liked it. It looked like she woke up, ran her hair through her fingers and then left the house. She also wore a skirt that went up to her waist and down to the middle of her thighs with some black stockings and black flats. She paired it off with a white button-down shirt and her black backpack.

Jake on the other hand wore black jeans, they hugged him very slightly, and Sherry was happy to see that they weren't skinny-jeans. His usual boots and a black leather vest with studs on the shoulders, she bit her lip to keep back from saying something she might regret. He looked good.

"Hi Jake," she shyly stepped forward and stopped in front of him as he smirked down at her and leaned off of his motorcycle. His hand went to her hip and squeezed lightly, "I like your vest."

"Mhm," he hummed and ducked his face to her own, "I'm glad," he kissed her forehead and then appraised her with his eyes, "how are you going to get on my bike with that skirt."

She frowned, "I… I don't know."

Sighing Jake bent down and put his arm behind her knees. He very quickly picked her up, ignoring her yelp and placed her in the seat so that she was sitting sideways, "that'll have to do."

"Is this even legal?" Sherry breathed shakily. Jake grinned and leaned forward, resting his hands on either side of her on the leather seats, she grabbed onto his shoulders shakily for stability as he leaned in closer at eye level, "Jake?"

"I don't know if it's legal, but I'm not going to let you walk, what if some guy see's you?" his eyes glinted mischievously, "I've got to keep an eye on you."

"I can take care of myself," she said strongly, aware of how he grinned the slightest bit at her.

"I believe you, but that doesn't mean that I'm not taking you to school, besides, I like you so close."

Sherry reddened furiously as Jake snickered and threw his leg over the bike. The next moment her arms were around his waist and she was hugging him closely, it was his favorite part.

When they got to the school everyone watched as Sherry hopped off the bike and Jake straddled it, shutting the thing off and then grinning at her as she fiddled with her hair.

"It's fine, you look fine."

"Yeah but the wind," she continued to nervously plaster it down, "does it look like I just got off of a motorcycle?"

Jake laughed at that and then towed her towards the school. Steve Burnside glared at Sherry and Jake with such a ferocity that Sherry felt it on the side of her face. She turned to see who it was that was staring and when she saw that it was none other than Steve Burnside she quickly ducked her head and followed Jake inside.

Jake led her towards the end of the hallway with his arm wrapped tightly around her waist. They always arrived way too early.

"Where are we going?" Sherry asked with confusion as he towed her down the hallway and then to the left.

"We're going to hang out," he responded and then led her to the girls bathroom, her eyes bulged.

"We can't go in there! You're a guy-

"Oh God," he rolled his eyes and pushed his shoulder against the door, pulling her inside. She didn't struggle and quietly followed him as it swung shut behind him. She noticed the name ROB ZOMBIE printed on the back of Jake's vest and smirked, she liked Rob Zombie too. A few songs at least.

Jake quietly pulled her over towards the sink and leaned against it, watching her curiously.

She looked nervous, her eyes kept going in and out of focus as if she was trying to concentrate on something

"Are you listening to see if anyone is going to come in?"

"Yes," she muttered, annoyed that he had figured it out, "we shouldn't be in here—

"I had to talk to you," he stated, seriously and then pulled her in close by the hands, "I wanted to ask you something."

This made her nervous. Jake seemed to notice and wrapped his arms around her waist slightly so that she was pressed up against him, she tried to control her breathing. She was all too aware of the way he was pressed along the front of her body.

"W-what's up?"

"I need to understand where you and I stand," his eyes narrowed at her, "this is all confusing. I don't want to do something that'll hurt you."

"Like what?"

"Like do something with someone else."

The made her pause. She hadn't considered the possibility that he might be doing this very same thing with her females in the school. The thought made her a bit hostile.

"I'm your friend first Jake." Sherry removed herself from him and hopped up onto the sink, sitting down on the flat part and leaning back against the horizontal mirror that stretched to the other side of the bathroom. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Jake stood in front of her with a narrowed gaze, "because you're not answering my question."

Sherry sighed and stared at him seriously, "Jake I don't know what you want me to say-

"I want you to say what this is. Are we friends, or is this going somewhere?" His feet carried him until he settled against her knees, his hands pressed against the top of her thighs and slowly he dug his thumb in a gentle motion against the fabric of the stockings, as if massaging a knot away, "what do you want?"

Her heart gave a wild stutter and she blinked nervously.

"I don't know," she murmured and watched his hands as he gently pulled her legs slightly apart. Her breathing hitched as he settled against the sink and between her knees, her feet dangled on either side of him, _sweet Jesus. _

Jake smirked as she began to breathe a bit less rhythmically. His lips found the side of her neck and she released a hard shiver when he kissed her there, "is there anything I can do to make your answer a bit clearer?"

She felt so good under his mouth. Her skin tasted like her lotion and he liked the way it smoothed her skin.

"Jake," her breath left her in a hard motion and for a moment she swore her intestines were on fire and threatening to decimate her. _Why am I reacting like a fourteen year old girl, oh God… _

"Sherry?" He smirked and bit her neck gently, noticing how she jumped a bit before melting forward towards him, "I think I know what we should do," he leaned forward and locked his hands on her hips, sliding her forward until the inside of her thighs were against the side of his hips, she stared up at him with a haze, "let me put it to you like this…"

His hands tightened and she raised her hands to the back of his neck, playing with the very short hair there, his lips found her ear and she almost moaned at the way he touched her there but stopped herself. He continued, "if I see anyone, and I do mean _anyone_, trying to get anywhere with you there will be hell to pay."

Sherry nodded mutely and found herself turning her face towards him, kissing his jaw gently as if he were made of glass. Jake shivered against her, "and in turn you can't do this… whatever this is, with anyone else."

Jake nodded in agreement, "not that I'd fucking want to," how could he?

It was just as Jake was about to cup her ass in his hands that he heard what sounded like footsteps outside of the door. He froze and Sherry sensed it too.

In one swift motion Jake grabbed her and her backpack and ran into the nearest stall. Sherry gasped as he grabbed her by the waist and shut the door as someone came into the bathroom. Quickly Jake shut the lid of the toilet. He climbed until he reached the top of the tank.

Sherry was going to die.

"We're going to get caught!" A woman's voice came from the outside. Sherry's eyes widened as she realized that she was 'not supposed to be there' by the logic of whoever was outside of the stall.

Jake quickly grabbed her arm and she was forced to jump onto the lid of the toilet. She stood in front of him as he settled back against the wall as if he was trying to get comfortable. He patted his thigh and Sherry shyly sat on his leg. Jake smirked as she leaned against him and nestled her face into his neck.

"Relax Ada," Mr. Kennedy's voice replied. Sherry clapped a hand over her mouth, "everything will be fine."

"Fine? Fine? Are you stupid? We're in a bathroom and you think everything is going to be fine?"

"Yes," he chuckled and Sherry heard the sound of a low moan, she was sure they were kissing, "you taste so good."

Jake's jaw dropped open and Sherry's eyes bulged.

They heard more moaning and then what sounded like buttons being popped open. Sherry looked to Jake as he shifted, quickly he whispered in her ear, "We're going to be here for a while. Might as well get comfortable." They shifted until she was sitting on his lap, leaning back against him and his legs were slightly spread under her. Sherry was tense, and so was Jake. The both knew why. They were pressed so closely.

"We have to hurry, I've got class first period," Mr. Kennedy rushed.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I'd hate to make you late," Ada, who Sherry now realized was Ms. Wong hissed.

"I'm not going to be late," Mr. Kennedy replied and then they heard a hard moan from the doorway where they were both still standing, "I'm going to make you cum in five minutes."

"And you'll be done in four, are you proud of that?"

Mr. Kennedy gave a chuckle and Sherry's eyes widened as they proceeded to hear hard breathing and skin slapping on skin.

Jake shifted a bit uncomfortably. Sherry's ass was pressed right against his crotch, he prayed that he wouldn't get hard, but as she shifted with discomfort of her own he started feeling the familiar urges to have her here… He wondered…

Sherry felt Jake's hand at her thigh and she looked down with confusion as his fingers splayed out. Slowly, as if he were testing her out, his hand moved up her leg and then stopped just as the hem of her skirt.

Oh…

"Would you stop me?" Jake murmured in her ear gently, his voice sounded dark, he flexed his thighs slightly and she stifled a gasp as she felt him hardening against her.

Would she stop him? Did she want this?

Sherry breathed a small breath and watched his hand with interest.

"We can't," she whispered.

"Can't we?" He replied quietly. She braced her toes against the lid of the toilet and stared at his fingers as they began to slowly trek upwards again until they were underneath her black skirt.

"Leon," Ada Wong moaned from where she was against the door.

Sherry's heart gave a stutter when Jake used his thighs to move her legs open slowly. His thick boots were dirtying the white lid of the toilet. And the farther he spread her feet apart the closer they got to either side of the toilet top until both their legs dangled off. He kept her legs open using his feet inside hers.

"Do you want this Sherry?" he whispered in her ear as he slid his fingers into the inside of the band of her stockings.

She gave one sharp nod and bit her lip to stifle any sounds. Jake slid his hands further down until he felt the band of her panties, deciding to not push his luck he kept his hand over the thin material but he could feel the heat emanating from what lay inside. His cock twitched.

"God," Mr. Kennedy breathed as the sounds of the skin slapping got faster.

"Jake," Sherry's small whisper was so low he didn't even hear it.

Using his longest finger he slid it down the length of her and almost groaned at the moistness of the material as his fingers slid lower and lower. Her body lengthened and tightened at the sensation of him.

Sliding his finger back up he heard her give a slight moan and quickly clapped his hand over her mouth, crushing her back up against him until her head lay back on his right shoulder and she was staring up at the ceiling.

Jake rubbed his finger over her in gentle motions, taking his time and watching her shiver and feeling her dampen against his touch. Jake had to force himself to not groan at the feel of her. He did however steal a lick at her neck as she clutched the arm that he was using to touch her.

"I'm almost there," Mr. Kennedy moaned.

Jake rubbed Sherry a little faster, her breath was becoming labored and her hips were inching forward towards him more and more, her ass rocking against his erection. He gave a soft moan.

_You're not so good after all, _he thought as she rocked her hips towards his fingers. He wanted to bury himself in her, but wouldn't dare.

"Shit!" Mr. Kennedy released a long stream of curses and Jake grinned as he continued to touch her, kissing her neck softly as he gently pushed at the panties, burying some of the material into her and the pulling it back out.

"I'm coming," Mr. Kennedy grunted and suddenly he began cursing violently.

Jake hurriedly rubbed at Sherry, she was clutching his thighs, digging her nails into his jeans as he tried to give her what she wanted.

The bell rung horribly loud, forcing them all to stop moving.

"We'll do this again, tomorrow," Ada Wong quickly stated as Sherry and Jake heard the obvious sounds of them trying to put their clothing on.

"Yes," Mr. Kennedy agreed.

Next thing Jake and Sherry heard was the door slamming shut.

_What am I doing! _Sherry shrieked mentally.

One instant Sherry was on him and the next she was spilling out of the bathroom stall. Her heart was throbbing violently, and she was embarrassed, flushed, self-loathing, and most of all feeling like the stupidest person on earth.

"We-we—can't do that again," she shook her head with embarrassment, "that can't-

"You wanted it," Jake pointed out with a dark smile, walking out of the stall with a glint in his eye, she tried to not stare at the slight bulge in his pants, "I'm certain we'll be doing that again."

"That… no," Sherry shook her head and grabbed her bag, "I-I'll see you in lunch," she squeaked and made an attempt to run out of the bathroom.

Jake grabbed her around the arm and pinned her to the sinks and quickly whispered in her ear, "next time I'm going to make you cum Sherry."

"Bye Jake," she squeaked and trembled out of the bathroom.

Jake had to bite his tongue to keep from laughing.

In class Sherry couldn't look at Mr. Kennedy in the eye.

**…**

By the time gym came around Jake wasn't surprised to see that Sherry had skipped class. It made him want to laugh more than it should have and he couldn't wait for lunch.

He met up with Chris and Billy, not making any mention of what had happened and when he entered the lunchroom he grinned at the sight of her.

She was opening up a small square of tinfoil, her sandwich no doubt. She appeared a bit jittery.

When he approached Sherry blushed and tossed him a small smile, waving awkwardly at everyone. Did he think she was easy now? She hoped not. More than anything she hoped that that hadn't changed his view about her at all.

_I'm such an idiot, _she thought quietly.

"So," Chris started, "is Sheva at your place since she's suspended and what not?"

Sherry nodded, "she's probably going to watch TV all day, cooking shows."

The conversation continued like this throughout that lunch period, and Jake smirked at how she avoided looking at him. He found it funny.

When the day was over and Sherry approached Jake as he waited for her on his bike she tried to look more confident then she felt, and he noticed, but he said nothing and greeted her as usual. She mounted the bike as she had earlier and Jake drove her home. Biting his lip to keep from laughing at how nervous she seemed.

By the time he stopped in front of her house Sherry realized that she had to talk to him about what had transpired that morning.

Jake was getting off his motorcycle and walking her to her front door when she started, "Jake... that… what happened-

"It's not a big deal Sherry, I know what you're thinking," his eyes were alight with humor, she frowned with confusion, "you're thinking that I think you're a slut or something," she flinched at the word, "I don't."

"I just… I'm not like that-

"Why are you so ashamed to say that you liked it?" It was starting to annoy him, "there's nothing with what happened, its normal."

"I just don't want you to think that that's normal occurrence for me," she stopped in front of her door and stared up at him, "please don't let that change your view of me. I'm not-

"Stop," he held his hand up, "you need to stop fucking pretending that you're some Virgin Mary. You liked it, and I fucking loved it, and that's the end of it. I don't think you're a slut, or easy, or whatever the hell else you girls fill your heads up with," he took her chin in his hand, "you're Sherry and I still like you as much as I did yesterday."

She swallowed hard at his words and nodded, accepting it and believing him, "okay… I believe you."

"Good," he smirked and released her chin, "bye Supergirl."

"Bye, Ketchup."

Jake turned and went back to his bike and mounted, waiting for her to open the door, when she did and turned around he flashed her a cocky grin.

Jake raised his index and middle finger to his mouth and gave them one long and sensual lick, Sherry trembled and clutched the doorknob tightly, then he mouthed 'yum' at her.

Sherry almost fainted.

So rather then watch him any longer out of fear of what he might do next she shut the door and ran up to her apartment.

Jake finally released a roar of laughter when he got home, she absolutely thrilled him. He couldn't wait to see her if she would thrill him again by sneaking out Friday. He was almost certain that she would.

* * *

**:O Naughty Sherry, Naughty Jake!**

**Well, at least they've come to a mutual understanding!**

**Chapter 25 is next. I have awesome things planned. **

**Review! :O**


	25. Wasteland

**Chapter XXV**

When Friday night came Sherry was nervously biting her lips, pacing back and forth in her room. She was going to do it. She was going to sneak out tonight and hope to God that her father would not catch her. If he did she wouldn't know what to do with herself. She was certain that he would put her on some extreme form of lockdown.

Sheva had left to meet up with Chris, after all, she did not need permission to go out. It was Sherry who needed to get out with permission, except tonight she was not going to ask for permission. Her nerves were getting the best of her.

What if her father needed help and she was not here?

The thought continued to make her heart stutter.

"I'll be here Sherry," Jill smiled softly from the girl's bed. It was only because of Jill that Sherry would be a bit calmer as she snuck out, "you need to get out sometimes. So go, I'll call you if anything happens, I promise."

"What if he needs to tell me something? How are you going to handle that?" Sherry murmured, "You can't 'pretend' to be me."

Jill frowned, "I don't know. But he'll be asleep Sherry I'm sure he's going to be fine."

Sherry nodded and glanced at herself in the mirror. She looked good, at least that's what Jill did her best to assure her of. She wore fitting forest green pants and a white button down shirt. Her hair was styled as usual and she dabbed on a bit of lip-gloss over her Chapstick.

Sherry waved goodbye and walked to the window. Quickly she climbed out to the fire-escape and looked over the railing. Jake was standing there with a sly smile plastered on his face, leaning against his motorcycle and giving her a wary glance.

Sherry quickly lowered the ladder and began making her way down. She could see Jake approaching her as she came lower and lower, ready to catch her should she slip and fall.

When she reached the very bottom Jill looked out the window and gave them both a wave, Jake waved back and Jill began raising the ladder again. Sherry nervously looked at Jake and released a hard breath.

"Did you think I was going to fall or something?"

He smirked, "I just wanted to get a nice view," he playfully joked and kissed her hard on the temple, pulling her towards the motorcycle as she blushed, certain that he wasn't fully joking.

"How long will it take to get to the carnival?" She asked quietly as he lifted her onto the bike. The feel of his hands made her shiver as she remembered exactly what they had done to her in the bathroom stall.

"A matter of minutes, I promise," he climbed in front of her and shrugged, "relax."

She nodded and wrapped her arms around him, soon they were off.

…

"Holy cow!" Sherry shouted over the roar of the motorcycle as she glanced over Jake shoulder. Straight up ahead they could see a rapidly moving mechanism with people on it, screaming at the top of their lungs. Jake laughed as Sherry admired all the lights and colors bursting ahead of them. She could see a Ferris wheel, a rollercoaster, tents and different things of the sort. Jake parked the motorcycle and quickly climbed off, watching Sherry as she jumped off the bike and rose on the balls of her feet.

"Have you never been to a carnival or something?"

"I've been to carnivals," she laughed, "it's just that it's been a while. I want to get on that," she pointed to the small rollercoaster. Jake smirked, "we should find Chris and Sheva and get them on it too."

Jake agreed and he towed her with an arm around her waist into the carnival. They paid at the entrance and their eyes were immediately saturated in violent patterns of bursting light and loud music. Sherry grinned at all the people around her as they ate and played games. There were so many things to do and she wanted to do them all with Jake.

They found Chris and Sheva over by a game. In his hand Chris held a hammer and Sheva stood at his side with a grin plastered on her face. Chris raised the hammer over his head and let it slam back down to the base of the machine with a strange force of energy. A bar shot up to the top of the machine and rang out, signaling that he had 'won'.

Jake grinned as Sheva and Sherry clapped wildly for him.

Chris was awarded a huge teddy bear which he gave to Sheva, she kissed him and then towed him to where Jake and Sherry stood, admiring their friend for the feat.

"That was awesome!" Sherry laughed, hugging Chris.

"Well duh, I'm fucking strong," he boasted and high fived Jake.

"Sherry wants to get on the rollercoaster," Jake announced when they were walking away from the machine, and the death glares that guys still on line were shooting at Chris, "wanna' join?"

"Yes," Sheva instantly answered and with that in mind they headed towards the huge mechanism.

As Sherry walked she noticed that there were a lot of different kids from school here. She saw Excella vaguely among the heads of the moving people. She ignored the sight of the woman and only moved closer to Jake. He seemed to notice her small gesture and kissed her on the top of her head, she smiled happily.

When they were on the line Chris boasted of how he had won at every game he played so far, Sheva shook her head discreetly at Jake and Sherry, telling them that this was not exactly true.

"You won at the hammer hitting thing and the water gun game that's all. Remember that you lost at the hula hoop competition?" Sheva grinned.

Jake's eyes bulged, "hula-hoop?"

"Shut up," Chris glared at his friend, "it was fun."

When they were at the front of the line Billy showed up and skipped everyone. The people in charge of keeping everything in an orderly fashion looked at his tattoos and seemed to become wary of telling him to go to the back of the line. Sherry, quickly climbed onto the ride and Jake sat beside her, Chris and Sheva were in front of them and Billy and Rebecca behind.

"I'm so scared," Sherry whispered as the workers secured everyone into their seats, dropping metal bars onto their thighs. Her bar didn't even touch the top of her thigh because she was so slim, "I'm going to fall out!"

"You'll be fine Sherry," Jake grinned as she started to freak out.

"No-no-no this can't be right!"

"FIVE!" the people started counting down to launch off.

"Oh this is going to be horrible!" She exclaimed, "Look at the space Jake!" She pointed at the bar and her thighs.

"Three!"

"Sherry it's going to be fine, look I'm totally fine."

"One!"

"Jake this isn't okay!" She declared one more time, grabbing his arm tightly.

"Sherry it's totally—FUCK!"

Their heads snapped back as the rollercoaster darted forward. Sherry released a long scream that deafened Jake and caused Billy to burst into a riot of laughter behind them as Rebecca laughed at Sherry and Chris' antics.

"Fuck! Fuck! Oh my fucking God!" Chris yelled monstrously as his large arms came up in the air.

Sheva was laughing as she heard Sherry and Jake behind her.

"Oh sweet baby Jesus!" Sherry screeched as they made a turn, she came up off the seat slightly and Jake held onto her with laughter bubbling up out of him as she trembled in his arms, her eyes were as wide as plates and she looked like she had just seen all the answers to the universe. "No!" She yelled at nothing in particular.

In front of them Chris roared with a laughter so violent that he began to choke on the air, Sheva laughed at him and listened to Billy who was in the back yelling.

"Sherry it's fine!"

"No! This isn't okay! This is horrible! Oh god I'm going to choke on my gum!"

"No don't spit it out!" Jake laughed, but it was too late.

She spit it out only to have it fly back and hit Billy right on the cheek. He gave a strange sound of repulsion from the back of his throat and Sherry continued to scream, not realizing what had happened.

Finally the ride came to a halt and Chris was the only one left laughing as Billy helped a wobbly Rebecca out of the seats and Sheva watched Chris laughing obnoxiously. Jake looked down at Sherry who was whispering a prayer and bit his lip to not laugh at her.

"It's over Sherry," he informed her, lifting the bar and gently pulling her out of the seat. She trembled violently and followed him out. Chris needed help getting out of the ride as he was laughing too hard. Sheva rolled her eyes and helped him.

"That was so bad," Sherry murmured as Jake helped her down the stairs and away from the ride, "God that was _so_ horrible! Why would I want to do that?"

"You were awesome," Jake smiled and held her face so that she looked up at him, "do you need to vomit?"

"No," she assured him, rising on her toes to hug him, "but I'm never doing that again."

…

The group played games and walked around the entire night, sometimes going off on their own or meeting up later. Jake held onto Sherry the entire time, watching her as she played games or when she would discreetly look up at him, thinking he didn't notice.

But he noticed. And it thrilled him to no end. He'd press his lips to her temple every now and then, happy to know that he was allowed to do this. She made him happy, so intensely happy that it had occurred to him only then that he had not felt like this… ever.

At the end of the night they all decided it was time to take a break before they headed home. It was already one in the morning. Jake noticed the way Sherry had begun to blink with a bit of drowsiness, indicating to him that she was in fact very tired. As they all walked down the dirt road of the parking lot Jake began to speak to Sherry.

"I really like that you came out," his voice was low and sincere, "its fun when you come out."

She looked up at him and grinned, "I'm glad I came too. I like being out with you."

"I'm glad," he grinned and kissed her forehead gently, she leaned against his lips and sighed. Happy for the first time in a long time, "I like you."

"I like you too," he breathed, a bit huskily she noted. He stared down at her for a long moment as the group kept moving without them and then without hesitation he lowered his face to hers.

Sherry's lips tingled as his came down to touch them. His mouth was smooth and gentle, his hands were her at back press her closer as he leaned down and she came up on her toes. She tasted so good to him, her mouth tasted like the cotton candy he had bought her earlier. He was so soft and fit perfectly against his as he beckoned her to open her mouth a little bit. He gave a low moan when she held onto his face, and she released a soft breath when she felt his tongue dart out to touch her bottom lip. Her own tongue came out and touched the tip of his in the heat of it all.

"Fuck," he whispered gently, pulling his mouth away. Sherry opened her eyes and blinked, "you're fucking good."

She blushed as he leaned down and kissed her once again, his stare at darkened and she released a whimper of delight as his teeth caught her bottom lip, tugging it just the slightest bit before he pulled away and stroked her reddened cheeks.

She had just kissed Jake Muller.

It really would have been the perfect ending to a perfect night. She leaned her forehead against his cheek for a long time and tried to even out her breathing… Jake began to tow her back towards their friends who were pretending to not have noticed it. But Chris was grinning so wide that it was obvious that they had seen.

Jake's lips still tingled as he came to his friend's side and they continued down the dirt road. He wanted to kiss her again and again. He wanted to do it right now. Licking his lips once he smirked, he still tasted like her.

It _would_ have been the perfect ending to a perfect night.

As Sherry looked down the road she noticed a group of people headed their way. Sherry could see that one of them was Steve and instantly stiffened.

"What's wrong?" Jake murmured, noticing how she had seemed to tense. He followed her gaze and instantly narrowed in on Steve Burnside. He flexed his fists and looked to Chris who had noticed Steve as well.

Sherry and Jake steered to the left, Billy, Rebecca, Chris and Sheva moved to the right, allowing the group of Steve and four of his friends to walk in between them. But Steve, who had his eyes locked in on Sherry stopped right in her path and smiled.

"Can I talk to you?" He asked, ignoring Jake.

"Move on," Jake muttered, shoving him back and away from Sherry. She pulled on his arm sternly, glaring at him for getting so physical.

Steve who had stumbled back a few steps glared at Sherry, "this is who you're with? This moron? He's an asshole Sherry! He only wants to fuck you!"

"Hey!" Chris yelled and started charging over.

"I'm going to give you five seconds to get out of here," Jake warned him angrily, "or else I'm going to bash your skull in."

"Sherry! You see!" Steve hollered, his face turned bright red with anger, "he's nothing! He's sh—

"Steve stop," she scolded him like if he were a child, pulling back on Jake once more as Chris glared down at Steve. She shot Sheva a pleading look, the brunette instantly started pushing her boyfriend back, Billy glared at Steve as Rebecca watched on with shock, completely confused.

"Sherry, if you leave with him tonight he's going to do things to you," Steve warned her, "he's going to try to-

"I said stop!" She stepped around Jake and glared at Steve, "who do you think you are? You don't tell me what to do Steve! I don't even know you. Are you crazy? You don't know us and you certainly don't get to tell me what to do."

"I'm trying to help you," his eyes narrowed and he continued, "Jake is not what he seems to be. He's violent, and mean and just an asshole!"

"I'm going to fucking kill you!" Jake hissed violently.

"Come," Steve grabbed Sherry around the elbow gently and began to pull her away. But he didn't get very far.

In one instant Jake had grabbed Sherry around the waist, yanking her back so hard that Steve's nails scraped down her arm. She yelped as she collapsed back against the ground and Jake was on Steve the next moment.

Jake's fist came down with explosive power on Steve's jaw, causing the smaller boy to fall back against the ground.

Steve's friends swarmed in on Jake and Chris instantly jumped in, pulling them off of his friend easily. It was mayhem, and Sherry could only watch in terror. She could see Jake kneeing the side of Steve's body harshly. The veins in Jake's hands were popping up as adrenaline rushed through his system. And Steve's friends were struggling to pull him off.

"Jake stop!" Sherry cried out and ran at him before one of Steve's friends shoved her down to the ground.

"You asshole!" Sheva shrieked and was on him the next moment.

Chris looked at the sound of her voice and found her punching a guy to the ground, Billy was helping Sheva wrestle down the guy and Rebecca was trembling horribly where she stood. Sherry was running at Jake again as Steve struggled for control as Jake straddled him, repeatedly driving his elbows into the kid's face.

"I warned you!" Jake hissed violently, he could feel small hands on his arm, pulling but not managing, "don't you ever fucking look at her! Ever!" He had never felt so blinded with rage. He could hardly control himself.

"Jake please! Please!" Sherry pleaded, tugging at his shirt and ripping it to shreds in the process. Jake wasn't listening to her, he hardly noticed that the shirt was clinging to his body. The tendons of his arms and shoulders stood taut.

Chris grabbed one of Steve's friends and landed a blow against his cheek, knocking the kid down into a bloody mess.

Steve somehow managed to punch Jake straight in the throat, and gain the upper hand and roll him off.

Steve was a bloody mess, his entire face was swollen up but he could see Jake coughing and trying to clear his vision. He landed a kick to his jaw, sending blood into the air and knocking Muller onto his side.

Everyone was fighting. Sheva was on the ground, sprawling with a guy with Billy on her side. Rebecca was standing there with a shocked expression. Chris was trying to look for who to help, and Steve and Jake were wrestling and pummeling each other half to death.

She had never seen anyone as single-handedly frightening as Jake was at that moment. He wasn't even blinking. His eyes seemed to flare in color! She was certain it was a trick of the light but he was absolutely terrifying. He looked like everything she feared in one moment. His muscles were taut, his fists were bloody and he was absolutely destroying Steve who moved sluggishly in comparison to Jake who moved so rapidly that it was... unnatural.

One moment it was all chaos, and the next it had come to a halt.

Sirens blared through the air.

"Get up! Get up!" Chris yelled as he pulled Jake away from Steve who was a bloody mess. Jake spit blood at him, fighting against Chris' grip to try and get to Steve who was being helped by his friends. "Billy get on Jake's bike and follow me! He can't drive like this! Give me the keys Jake."

"That motherfucker!" Jake spit blood again and Chris dug his hands into Jake's pockets, finding the keys and throwing them at Billy. "Sheva, Sherry, get in the car!"

Sheva helped Sherry quickly to her feet and they both went after Chris as he wrestled Jake towards the red car.

"Let me go! I'm going to fucking kill him! I'm going to beat the shit out of him! He's fucking dead!" Jake yelled over Chris' shoulder as Chris wrapped him up in a bear hug and quickly moved towards the vehicle, "you're done motherfucker!"

"Fuck you asshole!" Steve yelled from somewhere else.

Chris forced Jake into the car and shut the door. Sherry climbed into the back and Sheva sat beside her, Jake and Chris were in the front. The car roared to life and Chris pulled out of the parking spot easily and then began driving out of the dirt road parking lot, looking in his rearview mirror as Billy pulled out of a spot on Jake's bike and followed them.

"You saw that dickhead?" Jake huffed angrily, breathing so hard that his chest heaved, "I'm going to hit him so hard on Monday."

"Jake, stop, please," Sheva murmured.

"Look at my fucking knuckles," he laughed, holding them up. Sherry looked down at her arm and winced. Four long lines ran down her forearm from where Steve's nails had scraped down. Blood was popping up here and there, "he is such a little bitch."

"Jake, stop, please you're scaring Sherry."

It seemed to be the first time he had remembered about Sherry being there because his body stiffened and then he swirled around in the front seat and looked back at her. She wasn't looked at him, she was looking at her arm, focused in on it.

"Sherry, are you okay?" He asked gently, trying to keep his voice even.

"She's not okay," Chris sighed, "Jake put on your seatbelt, I don't need the fucking cops pulling me over right now. Especially not with your shirt like that and her arm that way."

He looked down at Sherry's arm and bit back a curse. It looked like someone had scratched her with a cheese grater.

He sat back down, albeit tensely, and put on his seatbelt, keeping his eye on Sherry through the rearview mirror.

She was silent the entire way to her house. When they pulled up Jake got out of the car instantly.

He pulled open Sherry's door and she stepped out shakily. Her arm was trembling and her eyes seemed to be looking anywhere but him, they were jittery.

"Sherry, Sherry look at me," he ordered, it bugged him that she wouldn't look at him. It was like she was purposely avoiding him, "damn it, Sherry look at me."

"No," she shook her head quietly and Sheva came to the blonde's side, "I just want to go inside right now—

"Sherry-

"Jake

"Are you mad at me or something?" He glared. His chest tightened at the prospects.

"No, Jake I'm just tired… this night was just a lot and—

"Then look at me."

She raised her eyes to him, clenching her jaw to keep from crying. Her arm hurt, and looking at him was even worse. He had blood staining his teeth, and there was still heat in his stare. She could tell that the adrenaline hadn't died there yet.

"I'll call you tomorrow." His statement was definitive.

"Yeah, okay," she murmured dismissively and walked towards her apartment. Jake blinked at the spot where she had just been and then looked towards her and Sheva as they disappeared into the apartment building.

Jake stalked back to Chris's car and closed the door, struggling to not slam it.

"She's fucking mad at me," Jake hissed, "she has no right to be mad at me."

"She's just scared Jake," Chris sighed, "you turn into a fucking monster when you fight. How do you think she feels after what she just saw?"

He thought about that for a minute as the lights in Sherry's apartment flickered on and Chris pulled away from the curb.

"I'd rather she be angry then scared," he muttered, wincing as his jaw protested.

**…**

Sheva led Sherry into the apartment quietly. Both were covered in dirt, but only one of them was injured.

Sheva turned on the lights quietly and walked to the kitchen as Sherry walked towards her bedroom. Inside Jill was laying on the bed sleeping soundly. She quietly gathered her sweats and shirt and left the room.

It was as Sherry was stepping back into the living room that she froze.

Her father stood in his doorway with a horrible glare in his eyes.

"I saw him Sherry," he said, "I saw you with Jake Muller."

* * *

**...Oh crap...**

**Review...**


	26. Get Got

**Chapter XXVI**

Sherry stood there for a long time. It felt as if though the earth were turning on its side, her stomach rolled inside of her body. Her mouth dried. Sheva had also stopped moving.

"Dad," she started, "it-

"You look like a mess!" He exclaimed angrily. She jumped slightly and he looked at her closer, "what have you been doing Sherry?" the accusation was clear, "what were you doing with him? I told you to stay away from him! And you disregard me!"

"Dad I was at the carnival, that's all. I wanted to go," she began to tremble slightly, "I swear I didn't do anything bad."

"Look at your arm!" He argued back and stepped forward, grasping it tightly, "look at what you did!"

"That wasn't me dad, I swear-

"Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" His eyes widened with anger, "I've heard that motorcycle for a few weeks now. Each time it comes you are either coming or going. As soon as I heard it I got up. I saw you with that… shirtless boy," he spit it so harshly that she winced under his stare, "I told you to stay away from his kind. Do you remember what happened last time?"

"Dad-

"Do you!" He yelled with more strength then they both thought he had, "you seem to have forgetten that his type are not for you! I trusted you once Sherry and I saw what happened!"

"I wasn't doing anything bad," her throat tightened, it felt like everything was caving in on her, "dad I swear it was just a carnival. There was a guy there and Jake defended me from him, the guy ripped his shirt that's why he was like that. I swear."

"And this?" He shook her arm by her wrists, "how did this happen? Look at your face Sherry it's covered in dirt!"

Behind her she heard the door click and she knew that Sheva was giving her privacy. She was thankful for this. "I was thrown to the ground in the scuffle. That was all."

His eyes flashed dangerously and he released her arm. Sherry felt like she was going to have a heart attack. He looked so angry. His skin was trembling on his cheeks as he expelled hair from his mouth, "you will not be seeing that boy anymore."

"I like him!" She exclaimed, "You can't stop me. I've been alone for so long and all because you refuse to let go of my mistakes!"

"Mistakes?" He sneered, "you call what happened last time a 'mistake'? It was a goddamn catastrophe! I will not have my daughter hanging out with people like him. You're not a goddamn slut Sherry! Have some respect for yourself! He is not good for you! He is convincing you to sneak out in the middle of the night. Is that the type of guy that you want to be seen with? Boys who get into more street fights then there are days in a week? Do you think I don't know about him?"

Sherry was on the verge of crying so she shut her eyes and when she opened them again she noticed her father glaring at her more intensely. She opened her mouth to speak, her voice had dropped a few octaves, "you don't know him like I do."

"You don't know anything about him," he said. It was true, "he is not a good man. He is exactly what you don't need in your life. You better call him and tell him to not show his face around here-

"He's my friend, dad please," she begged, "I really like him."

"Call him Sherry," her father instructed, breathing heavily from all the energy he had expelled, "tell him that whatever it is that the two of you are is done. Do you remember what happened the last time you were with someone like him? You were almost ripped away from me Sherry! Is that what you are doing? Following in your mothers footsteps?"

The words made all the air go out of her lungs. Sherry looked down at her feet, ashamed. He would never let her live that day down.

Being in the same room with him made her feel almost oppressed. Quietly she turned her back to him and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" He rasped, walking towards her quietly as she pulled the white door open. Her hands were trembling horribly, "get back here."

"I'm going for a walk-

"Over my dead body!" He hollered weakly, "Sherry—

She shut the door hard and stalked out of the apartment building, ignoring him as he called after her. Sherry could not see Sheva anywhere and wondered if she had gone to Chris' apartment. She hoped so. Tonight it would be a strange night to have her sleeping in the apartment.

Sherry walked and walked, rather aimlessly. When she came to an alleyway Sherry quietly lowered herself down against the brick wall and shut her eyes.

_I can't believe he just said that, _she thought, clenching her hands and trying her best to keep the trembling to a minimum, _I shouldn't be shocked. He's always been adamant about the subject of me dating guys like Jake. _

**…**

Jake was sleeping on Chris' couch with an arm draped over his arm. Chris was in his bedroom snoring away the events of the night. Jake couldn't help but fall asleep after sitting on the couch. It felt like his entire body had become a sack of potatoes.

It was as Jake was stirring slightly in his sleep that a harsh knock came at the door. He blinked himself awake as the knocking continued.

"Chris! It's me!" Sheva's voice sounded nervous from the hallway. Jake stood and without waiting for Chris he stepped towards the entrance and pulled the door open. Sheva entered with a frantic look in her eye.

"What's up?" Jake asked in a sleepy voice, shutting the door and running a hand down the back of his neck, "what are you doing here? Wasn't Sherry—

"Sheva?" Chris groaned tiredly from his bedroom door. His hair was a mess and his boxers were dangerously low, Jake rolled his eyes and Sheva looked to Chris warily, "what are you doing here?"

"Sherry got caught."

"What!" Jake's voice made her jump in surprise.

_Shit. That can't be good, fuck, fuck… I shouldn't have asked her to come out tonight. God damn it. Can't anything go right for me? Fuck! _"What happened?" He asked and turned Sheva around to face him, "is she alright?"

"Well I don't know. Her dad was so pissed Jake," she shook her head, "he was talking about how he warned her to not see you. And how she should have known better. The guy scared the shit out of us!" She shrugged out of his grasp and continued, "when we entered the apartment at first his bedroom door was closed but then when she came back out of her bedroom he was there just.. _waiting_ or something. I was in the kitchen and didn't even notice. I slipped out because it seemed like things were getting kind of personal."

"I need to call her," Jake muttered and went to his phone.

"We fucked up," Sheva murmured, "we should have been more careful."

Chris shook his head at her, "Sherry wanted to come out. She's eighteen for god's sake. She should be able to have a little bit of fun."

"By the looks of it Sherry's had a bit of fun in the past and her father wasn't too thrilled to let her have fun again," Sheva murmured.

Jake tried calling Sherry again, and again. Each time she did not respond. It was making his heart clench uncomfortably tight, and thus it was giving way to his anger. He shouldn't have asked her to come out.

_What if her father is some abusive fuck? _He thought anxiously as he texted her, _what if she needs me? _

**Sherry, Sheva just got here. I'm worried as fuck. Call me or text me. – Jake.**

"It'll be okay," Chris assured Sheva and Jake as they worriedly took a seat on his couch. He flicked on the light, causing Jake to wince slightly, "Sherry's a strong girl. I know it. Whatever this is – it'll blow over."

"What was her dad saying?" Jake asked curiously, "you said things were getting personal?"

Sheva nodded, "yeah, he was saying something about 'what happened last time'. I guess Sherry did something like this before. He was so fucking mad, I don't even know how to describe it. Every time I've seen him he's been pretty cool about everything. Kind of mellow. But this was just insane."

Jake looked down at his phone and glared at it, he messaged her again.

**Sherry message me. Now.**

Five minutes of torturous silence passed. He had enough. Something was wrong, otherwise she would have messaged him. He was certain of it.

Jake stood up in a flourish, "I'm going over to her place. I'll sneak in again. I don't give a fuck."

"Jake don't," Sheva shook her head at him, "don't make this worse-

"I'm going," he stated firmly. Sheva knew there was nothing else to say. Chris threw him one of his shirts which Jake caught in one hand.

"Don't take the motorcycle," Sheva waned him, "I heard him shouting about how that's how he knew that you were there tonight."

"Fine." Jake growled with annoyance and stalked out of the apartment.

**…**

When Sherry got back into her apartment she ignored her father. In truth she hardly heard him. She did hear him telling her that she had better call Jake Muller tomorrow and tell him that he was not going to be seeing her anymore. Sherry nodded absently and shut the door in his face. When she entered the bedroom she saw that Jill was standing there with a frightened look on her face.

"It's okay," Sherry smiled softly, speaking very quietly, "go home. Thanks for staying after I left again."

"I didn't want to leave, just in case something happened to him."

Sherry and Jill hugged good bye and Jill slipped out through the fire escape.

Sherry threw on a shirt and took of her pants and then climbed into bed tiredly, exhausted, drained, and unable to hold the lids of her eyes open any longer.

Her limbs were going to fall off. She sort of wished they did, then she would be perfectly numb.

She dozed off in a matter of minutes and began to dream of her days as a child with her father watching over her protectively and soothing her whenever she'd fall and bruise her knee. His voice would always soothe away all of her fears. But in the dream she began to grow, her age began to appear as she continued to mature in his lap, and yet he continued to protect her, even as she assured him she didn't need it.

"Sherry…"

The voice was foreign, and she did her best to stay asleep, she was hovering somewhere between being awake and being unconscious.

"Sherry, wake up."

Now the person was shaking her shoulder.

She opened her eyes with a bit of annoyance and blinked into the dark. When her eyes met crispy blue ones she thought that she was going to have a heart attack.

What was Jake Muller doing in her bedroom!

There was a slight bruise under his left right, it was the discolored flesh that made her wince as she looked at him. Reminding her that their perfect night had regressed so horribly.

He leaned down over her speechless form, placing a hand at the side of her head, "I heard what happened."

She opened her mouth frantically, "Jake my dad… you can't be here."

"Fuck that," he hissed and pulled up and away from her. He walked to her door and for a moment she thought he was going to pull it open but he only locked it. She sat up then as he took off his shoes quietly and then strode towards her.

When he reached the side of the bed he touched her cheek carefully, trying to gauge if she had changed her demeanor towards him.

"What happened?"

_Where do I begin? _She wondered. She knew where this had all started. This had all started a long time ago, before Jake. Before this town. Before the decision to move. "I don't want to talk about it… please."

"Okay," he agreed, not wishing to distress her, "move over."

"Jake you can't stay. My dad would kill you-

"I don't care, move over." He didn't even wait for her to do it. He nudged her with his hand on her hip. Sherry relented and moved aside. He shed his shirt and stood there in Chris' huge sweats. They clung off his hips and Sherry had to lock her eyes on something else to ignore the way his body looked.

Jake climbed in beside her and reached for her waist. Sherry shivered as he pulled her towards him, dragging her across the bed. It was only when her bare legs touched the material of his pants that she remembered that she was wearing boy-shorts and a shirt. No pants.

"Are you okay?" His voice was soft in her ear and he pressed her back a bit more firmly against his chest.

"I'm okay," she lied quietly, holding his hand, "I'm better now that you're here." She blushed at the words, but at least those were true.

"I was messaging you and you didn't answer. I thought you were mad at me or something."

"No," she shook her head and closed her eyes. She was so tired, "it's just been a long day… that's all."

Jake thought about that for a moment and then lifted her arm so that he could examine the wound he had seen their earlier that night. When he saw it he winced slightly, _I'm such a fucking moron. _"I shouldn't have pulled you away from him like that. You wouldn't have gotten-

"Shh…" she shook her head and turned to face him. Jake adjusted himself and lifted his head onto his hand, using his other arm to pull her closer. Her body was like a magnet to him, so small and perfect, "don't beat yourself up over it okay? I just want to… enjoy this. While it lasts."

She felt him stiffen slightly and the next moment he was frowning at her. Nervously she bit her lip, answering the question in his eyes.

"My dad wants me to tell you that this is over," she paused, "whatever this is."

That enraged him. "What? No. He doesn't even know me. What's his problem with me?"

"It's not you, I promise. It's just things in my past. He just worries about me that's all."

"Well that's in the past," his eyes became intense, "do you want me to go away?"

"No, of course not. How can you think that?" Her eyes became annoyed, "I like you."

"Good, then I'm not going any-fucking-where."

Sherry gave him a toothy grin and raised her mouth to his. His lips felt like marshmallows against hers. She needed this so badly, just to feel him, to be with him, surrounding by him.

Jakes hands started sliding around her waist and down her hip until he reached the curve of her ass, there he squeezed, causing her to moan very quietly as he rolled onto her and pressed his lower body against her thigh.

"Fuck," he hissed, pulling away from her mouth, "I didn't realize this was all you were wearing, he looked down between them and saw her black boy-shorts underwear. He smirked, "sexy."

"Not really," she breathed raggedly. Jake had returned his mouth to her face and was kissing the corners of her mouth softly. Making it very difficult to concentrate on anything but that and the way he periodically grinded his hips against her thigh.

Sherry could feel her hands skating down his back as his tongue forced its way into her mouth. She relented and touched his tongue with hers, shyly. It was as her hands reached his lower back and she pressed down, almost urging him to grind against her one more time that he rolled off of her and gave a breathless chuckle.

"Damn, Sherry," he breathed heavily and looked down at her as she tried to control her breathing, "I need to control myself better around you."

"Same here," she murmured quietly and then looked up at him, "although I really don't want to."

"Me either," he agreed and gave her a kiss on the forehead. She was the most exciting individual he had met in a long time. And as much as he hated to admit it the prospects that her father hated him made him a little jubilant. He hated however that he took it out on Sherry. "Go to sleep. I'll probably be gone by morning. But whatever."

"Okay…" she agreed and shut her eyes very tiredly, "night Jake."

"Sherry," he looked down at her sleepy face, she opened her eyes carefully, "I meant what I said to you before. I'm not putting up with these assholes trying to flirt with you," pinching her chin gently he reasserted what they both knew. "You're mine."

The intensity of his stare made her tremble a bit as she spoke, nodding, "and you're mine."

"Now go to sleep," he kissed her forehead and tucked her face into his neck.

It was a good night after all. For that night they enjoyed just being with one another.

They were both horribly unaware of how short lived that peace would be.

* * *

**Something bad.. something bad is coming O_o **

**Review...**


	27. Echoes of Silence

**Chapter XXVII**

The weekend had passed by quicker than Sherry had anticipated. Her bedroom door remain mostly closed, and when she saw her father they both greeted one another with silence. Sherry was more than aware of the annoyance that radiated off of him whenever she'd ask him what he wanted to eat. He'd reply briskly and she'd go off to cook what he wanted.

When Monday arrived she told Jake to not pick her up. The last thing she wanted was for her father to get angrier then he already was and end up having a heart attack over something so minor.

When Sherry began the day Sheva instantly hounded her, wanting to know how everything had happened in her absence. Sherry informed her of everything and Sheva's response was an encouraging smile and, "don't let it get you down. He'll get over this."

Sherry nodded in agreement, even though she knew he wouldn't.

In gym Jake instantly pulled her into an embrace and kissed her forehead, making some people stare and Sherry blush.

"How was the weekend? Did your dad flip out again?"

"No," she shook her head and took a seat on the bleachers, "he was fine. A little angry but generally fine." _What a lie._

"Maybe I should meet him," Jake suggested, "he probably thinks I'm some douchebag who's going to hurt you."

"That would be a bad idea."

"Why?" Jake smirked, "if I meet him maybe he'll relax."

"I doubt it." Her father made it very clear where he stood with Jake Muller, and he knew things about Jake that she didn't understand. Like the fact that Jake got into a lot of fights. How did he know things like that? "How was your weekend."

"Fine," Jake shrugged, "it just sucked that I couldn't message you at all."

Sherry agreed.

When gym was over they both headed to lunch, together this time. He made it very clear to everyone else that they were an item. Girls glared at her when Jake pulled her tighter to his side and guys watched curiously as Sherry blushed and ducked her head.

"I haven't seen Steve at all," Jake smiled proudly as they headed over to the table where Billy and Sheva were already sitting, "probably can't see out of his fucking eyeball."

"Jake…" her tone was stern, "you know that fighting is bad. You two shouldn't have gotten into that fight. It was seriously so stupid."

"He fucking deserved it," he defend, releasing her as they took their seats, "he's an idiot, if I see him again I'll probably kick the shit out of him."

"Cool it," Sheva warned him, "do you want to go to jail or something? Why are you such a hot head? You and Chris both. Jesus, even Billy is calmer than you both."

Billy smiled proudly, "Rebecca doesn't want me fighting. She got so scared the other day. Worse first date ever," he bit into his burger, "where's Chris?"

Right on cue Chris made his way through the cafeteria with a bright grin on his face. When he arrived at the table and landed a wet kiss on Sheva's mouth he stood there for a moment, "I've got news. They accepted me."

"Accepted you?" Sheva's face dropped, "what?"

"Into the core!" He smiled widely, "they want me to go out to Chicago for training and then from there who knows. But I'm going guys, I'm going to go to the army."

Billy, Jake, and Sherry congratulated him happily. Sheva smiled but it was easy to see that she was not exactly happy about it. Nonetheless she congratulated him and gave him a kiss. He seemed oblivious to the obvious sadness coloring her face.

A few minutes passed of Chris talking about his plans and then the topic changed to Sherry.

"So Sherry," Chris started, "what are you doing after high school? School ends in a few weeks."

"I don't know…" _by then dad may be dead… _the grim thought made her stomach churn, "I guess maybe I'll go to college. Study or something. I think I want to be a crime investigator. CIA type of stuff. I'm not sure yet."

"I didn't know you wanted to be in the CIA," Jake cocked his head to the side, his stare became mildly intense, "where would you go to school for that?"

She could see the implications of what he was asking. He wanted to know if she was sticking around. Instead of answering she shrugged and then diverted her attention to her sandwich. She'd rather not have this discussion with him.

**…**

She was stressing him the out ever since lunch.

Jake sat at the front steps of the school with a cigarette hanging from his lips.

She was going away, he didn't know it but he suspected it. Why else wouldn't she answer him? He had no right to expect her to stay anywhere near him. He knew this. But the thought that she might just get up and go annoyed him.

_She can't just go like that, _Jake tapped his foot restlessly, _Jesus, I'm in way too deep. _

"Jake," a soft purr came from his left. Jake lifted his head and looked up, knowing who it was.

"What the fuck do you want Excella?"

She smirked at his attitude and walked down a few steps until she was standing directly in front of him. Her eyes scanned him as if she was looking for something, "so you're dating her now?"

"Is that any of your business? No. So get out of my face or I swear to God-

"You're angry," she smiled slyly and stepped closer, leaning forward so that her face was getting in the smoke he blew out of his mouth, "and stressed. What's wrong?"

"That's not your business either."

She frowned, "you shouldn't be with her you know. She's not your type. She's a mouse and you're a lion."

"And you're a fucking snake," he bit back.

"Don't you miss us?" Her eyes flashed, "Do you really think she could touch you like I would?"

"Get the fuck out of here." He spit and stood up angrily walking away from her, "you're nothing but a fucking regret!" He yelled back at her as he began stalking towards the school. He could see Billy making his way out and briefly wondered if Sherry was still around. She probably was. But it didn't matter, it's not like he could give her a ride home anyway.

Billy pushed the door of the entrance open and stepped out into the hot air. Jake continued to smoke and kept his back to Excella.

"What's up Jake," Billy smiled as Jake stubbed out the cigarette and headed back into the school even though it was practically empty. Billy followed warily. "You okay? You were smoking. You don't usually-

"It's just Sherry," Jake murmured blowing out the last of the smoke into the school hallway. He didn't know where he was walking, but he was going _somewhere_, "I think that she might be going away or something."

"Does it really matter?"

"Fuck yes it does," Jake's voice became harsh, "we're… dating or something. I don't even know."

"Damn, really?" Billy raised a brow, "is that why you got into that fight with Steve? I knew you probably liked her but…"

As they turned the corner Jake realized that he had been walking in Sherry's direction. She was standing at her locker absentmindedly putting away the last of her books. It seemed that she didn't notice him or Billy walking up to her because when Jake grabbed her up from behind she gave a little squeal.

"Jesus! Jake put me down!" She laughed. When he set her down onto her feet she waved at Billy, "what are the two of you still doing here?"

"Nothing much," Jake shrugged absent mindedly, "I was hanging out outside. Had nothing better to do and then I decided to come in here. And there you were."

"You smell like smoke," Sherry wrinkled her nose, "are you okay?"

"I'm better now," Jake smirked and took her face in his hands. Billy raised a brow and Sherry blushed, "you look nice today by the way."

"I'm wearing black sweats and a T-shirt Jake, I'm dressed like crap."

"But nice crap," he leaned down and touched her lips with his own, very aware of the way she melted instantly. His tongue darted out to taste her lips and she shyly responded by touching her own to his. When he pulled back up Sherry shyly ducked her gaze and turned back to her books so that he wouldn't notice. "Are you walking home?"

"Yeah," Sherry smiled, "it's nice out so I'm sure it will be fine." She turned and bit her lip "I'm going to be right back, I need to wash my face. Wait for me?"

"Yeah of course."

When Sherry entered the bathroom Billy burst into conversation, completely unaware of Excella who stood behind a wall listening in curiously, having followed after her intense discussion with Jake.

"Jake, you two are really together aren't you?"

"You could say that," Jake muttered cryptically. It made him uncomfortable to be discussing this. It was private, and he didn't feel like letting Billy know anything about him and Sherry.

"Have you... you know… done things with her yet?" Billy asked, his dark eyes glistened with interest, "Sherry doesn't look like the type to just-

"That's not your business." Jake glared, "we are together. That's all you need to know."

Bill's eyes widened and his curiosity intensified and exploded, "you _did_ have sex with her."

"No. I didn't," Jake said, "are you on crack?"

Billy smirked and reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet, Jake stared with curiosity, "this is from the bet. You said that you could get her to kiss you. And I just watched her give you tongue so that's an extra—

Jake snatched him by the collar of his shirt and slammed him against a wall angrily. The sound of the metal colliding with his back echoed and made Excella jump from where she stood hiding.

"What the fuck? Get off of me!" Billy yelled as Jake slammed him angrily one more time against the locker.

"How fucking dare you?" He growled, "She's right next door and you're fucking risking her hearing? Are you out of your goddamn mind? I swear to God I'll rearrange your face if you ever, _ever_, bring this shit up again. Take your money and shove it up your ass!"

"Jake?" Sherry ran out of the bathroom with shock. Billy looked to her and Jake released Billy with a huff, "Jake what in the world are you doing!"

She stepped forward and pulled him away from Billy who was rubbing his neck angrily, "it's nothing Sherry," Billy muttered, "don't worry about it."

"What? Jake why did you –

"It's nothing Shery," Jake agreed, "don't worry about it."

She stared at the two of them. Dumb founded. "What are you two a pair of parrots? Can one of you explain what's going on!"

"I can explain," Excella smirked coming out of her spot behind the wall. Instantly Jake's body seized and Billy's stiffened. Sherry took on a defensive expression, furrowing her brow and eyeballing the taller woman warily as she sauntered forward on heels too high to be appropriate for school.

"Excella," Jake warned, "get out—

"Aw, don't you want me to tell your little girlfriend that you're nothing but a lying jerkoff? Don't you want what's best for her?" She teased. Now Sherry was interested. But she knew something was wrong. She could see it in the sheepish expression that Billy wore so well, and the angry defensive pose Jake was in. His hands were clenched into fists and his shoulders were taut. Excella looked at Sherry seriously.

"What are you saying?" Sherry murmured. Her heart picked up. The expression on Excella's face was not making her feel any better.

"He's been lying to you, that's what-

"Shut your fucking mouth," Jake warned her, "I swear if you keep-

"Excella, what's going on," Sherry whispered, stepping forward to the taller woman and staring at her hopelessly, "please tell me-

"Sherry," Jake stepped in between them and looked down at her. As if maybe that would block out the sound of Excella's voice, or make her disappear altogether. But it only made Sherry more curious. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously, "Sherry just go home its fine. Everything is fine—

"No everything is not fine." Excella smirked, "are you going to tell her, or should I?"

"Tell me what?" Sherry's throat was on fire, "what… what's going on?"

His blue eyes intensified with frustration. This was not the way this was supposed to happen. This was _never_ supposed to happen! Sherry began to tremble. What in the world was going on here?

"Fine, I'll tell her," Excella sighed and spoke from behind Jake as Sherry continued to stare at his angry and frustrated face, "he is with you for a _bet_. Apparently if he could kiss you he'd get some money from his friend here. And if you used your tongue I guess that he got more. So there you go, he's probably 5 dollars richer."

**…**

Moments of silence passed.

Sherry's heart began to beat erratically, and her skin turned bright red with shame. Absolute Shame. Jake's skin did the same, but he was enraged. Absolutely _enraged_.

"Is…" she struggled to speak and rubbed her throat. Her chest was beginning to hurt. _Dear God.. that can't be true? _"Is that true?"

But she knew it was true. The anger on his face… he knew what Excella was talking about even before she opened her mouth. If it were a lie he wouldn't have reacted that way. And the way Billy ducked his gaze from her told her everything she needed to know.

"God…"

"Sherry," Jake stepped forward and reached for her but she quickly stepped out of his reach. His eyes flashed, "Sherry listen to me-

"I can't believe you," her voice cracked. _I'm an idiot. Of course he would do this! God, of course he would. Dad was right… oh my God… he's just like the rest of them. _She began shaking her head at him, disbelief coloring her tone, "I… why would you do that to me Jake?"

He stood as still as a rock. His eyes angry, but not at her. Again he stepped forward but now she stepped back again. Excella crossed her arms with interest and Billy shook his head at his feet. "Sherry stop backing away from me."

"I don't want you near me," she squeaked and blinked quickly. No, she wouldn't cry. Not in front of him, "I just… was I so horrible to you Jake? Was everything you said a lie too?"

"What? Fuck! No!" He exploded, "I would never do that to you Sherry-

"Except you did," Excella laughed, he whirled around and glared.

Sherry nodded in agreement and wrapped her arms round her midsection .She felt like she was going to be sick. She kissed him, let him into her bed. She was fighting with her dying _father_ over _him_! _I have to get out of here._

Sherry turned and began to walk out, ignoring the sounds of Jake cursing at Excella. His enraged voice hurt her ears more than it usually did. And now her stomach was doing the worst kind of backflips. Her temples were pounding and it felt like she was going to collapse at any moment.

"Sherry!"

Jake was running after her. She pushed open the exit doors, hoping that it would close and slow him down. But of course it didn't.

He grabbed her around the elbow and pulled her back against the wall on the outside of the school. Sherry turned her face so that she was looking at the cement. Anywhere but him. He was too close. It hurt to have him there. _And to think I liked him… How cruel can he be?_

"Look at me!" Jake demanded, tightening his grip around her shoulders. She wouldn't meet his gaze. He touched her face and turned her gaze towards his. Her eyes were red where they were supposed to be white. It made his heart clench into a tight ball, "Sherry… it's not like that, and you've got to believe me-

"Let go of me."

"Sherry you just… it was only at the beginning."

"I was nothing but a bet to you," her unreasonably low and empty voice made him angrier, "I just want to go home Jake-

"No. Not until you talk to me," his breathing came faster and he removed his hands from her. Clenching them at his sides, "it's not like that Sherry. Fuck, I would never do that to you-

"You did," her voice was a squeak, "I just.. I want to go-

"No," he stepped in her way, "we're going to talk about this."

"I don't want to. Just go," she pleaded softly and tried to sidestep him, but again he stepped in her way, "I don't want to talk."

"Well I do," he said and stepped forward until she was pressed against the wall again, he took her face in his hands, ignoring how she twisted and grabbed at his wrists tightly to pull his hands away, "Sherry you have to listen to me," it was becoming painful to speak. His heart was dropping to his stomach.

"Get off."

He dropped his lips to her ear, hoping that it would calm her. It also helped him. She made the tightness in his chest feel better. "Sherry, please… listen to me-

"Jake-

"Just hear me out!"

"No -

"It was a mistake," he emphasized, his voice became rushed, "just… don't leave it like this. Please? Sherry you have to know I would never hurt you. I would never do anything to hurt you. I _care_ about you," the words burned his throat. Not because they were untrue but because they were the _absolute_ truth. The thought of her hurting made him want to destroy things, preferably himself so that he wouldn't have to be a witness to it, "I've never felt like this-

"My dad was right about you," she whispered sadly, shaking her head so that she wouldn't break down, "so was Steve."

Jake's hands dropped from her and he backed up, staring at her with shock.

"They both warned me, they told me I shouldn't be with guys like you. Steve told me that you'd hurt me… God and I was so stupid," she shook her head and ignored his increasingly outraged expression.

"Is that what you think?" He glared at her with hostility now, "that _Steve_ was right?"

She nodded. Her entire figure trembled and she looked away from him. It hurt to look at him. To think of how close they had been pressed just a few days ago. "Steve warned me," he voice cracked horribly.

"Go to hell Sherry," he glared.

The words shocked her so badly that she winced and almost jumped at their harshness.

They stood in silence for a long time. And the longer they stared at one another the more apart they became. Sherry could feel herself falling to pieces, and Jake could feel all of his regret building up.

_Why the fuck did I say that? _He thought as Sherry licked her dry lips and looked off into the distance.

Wordlessly Sherry stepped by him.

"Wait, Sherry wait!" He followed after her.

"Get away from me."

"Sherry! I didn't mean that! Please just stop-

"No, _you_ stop. Just get away Jake, go _away_. Make sure Billy gives you the five dollars—

"It's not five fucking dollars Sherry, Jesus Christ!"

"Leave me alone… please leave me alone" She croaked, stopping him finally. She silently began walking home, keeping an impassive face the entire time. Jake stood in the same place for a long time, and when he realized exactly what had happened, he stalked back to where they had been standing and forced his fist into the wall ten times.

"Jesus Christ! Stop!" Billy's voice came from the school entrance as he caught sight of Jake punching the wall angrily. He ran over as Jake collapsed and leaned back against the wall. He was breathing through his nose and trying to ignore the pain at his fists. They were bruised and bloody now.

He could hear Billy demanding that he give him his phone, he did so absentmindedly. In no time at all Albert Wesker showed up at the front of the school, stalking over to where his son sat.

Jake stood and ignored his father, angrily he followed the stoic man into his black car and settled into an uncomfortable silence.

At home Sherry buried herself under her blankets and held in her tears. She was not going to cry for Jake Muller.

_He's just like Luis… _she shut her eyes tighter and clenched her jaw tightly, ignoring the pain at her chest. _I can't believe he did this to me. _

She choked back tears, trying to make herself believe that he didn't matter.

In the end she walked to her father's room and quietly crawled into bed beside him, he held her as she trembled.

"What happened Sweetheart?"

"Nothing dad," she whimpered, trying to not feel disgusting. She felt like an object and nothing more, "I just... I'm really sorry about not listening to you."

"Me too," he murmured, knowing that it probably had something to do with Jake Muller, "me too."

* * *

**...Oh...**

**review...**


	28. Fight Through the Pain

**Chapter XXVIII**

Sherry ignored all of his calls into the next day. Jake had been relentless. And for a long time she feared that he might dare to show up at her front door. _Why was he bothering to call? Clearly he didn't have as much interest in me as I originally thought… God, what a mess._

The more she thought about things the more convinced she became that it should have been obvious. There were warnings all around her, not only that but things had moved way too fast. Too fast to be normal…

She rolled eyes in front of the mirror. Her father had demanded that she go to school today. Apparently he didn't want her getting in the habit of missing school over things like this. Sherry nodded quietly and had sulked to her bedroom and began to change.

She looked exactly like she felt, but she ran her fingers through her short hair quietly and let out a sigh. _Whatever. _

**…**

Seven text messages, five calls and nothing.

The first he had sent was a simple one, **Sherry, text me or call me whenever you get this. **

She had not responded, but he expected that she wouldn't so he did not make throw a fit about it, instead he sent her another one. This one was more direct. **Sherry, we have to talk about this. **

Again no response, so he tried one last patient message: **Please text me. **

After that all his messages had displayed his annoyance at her in general, **you're not even giving me the chance to explain.**

**Are you really going to not hear me out?**

**It's not what it seems like.**

**This is fucking ridiculous. **

He had called her multiple times throughout the day and she didn't bother to pick up a single one, _hell she didn't even bother to send me to the voice message system. _

Now he stood against his motorcycle waiting for her to show up. He wondered if she would purposely avoid him and show up a little later than usual. He wouldn't be shocked by it. And would she sit with them at lunch? He hoped so, he needed to see her. It didn't even matter that she wasn't interested in starting a conversation with him, it was all about the fact that she wouldn't even look at him, as if she wanted to forget him. Even when she had found out she kept trying to avoid his stare, and when she did look at him it was like he was someone she never knew.

_Fucking Billy, _Jake cursed and blew out smoke, _if he had kept his mouth shut none of this shit would have happened. And Excella… _

After his father had taken him home he washed his bloody fist and bandaged it messily.

He hardly got any sleep. Jake continued to rerun the sight of her over and over, the way she had looked at him. It made his chest hurt and his throat tighten so badly that he coughed a bit to clear the pressure.

The bell rang and Jake cursed under his breath and put out the cigarette. Where the hell was she?

…

"Are you alright?" Sheva asked in class as she looked over Sherry warily, "you look… tired."

Sherry smiled, "I'm totally fine, and how are you and Chris?"

"Well last night we talked about the army thing again," she cast a cautious stare to Mr. Kennedy, hoping that he wouldn't catch her talking in the middle of his lesson, "I basically told him that I'm not sure that I can do it… I know that he's going to be away for most of the time and I just don't know that I can stick around and wait for him."

"Don't feel guilty," Sherry whispered, "it's not for everyone."

Sheva nodded, "I just… I love him and even if I weren't with him it's not like I'd be able to move on to anyone else."

"Maybe you're just having trouble right now… accepting it," Sherry shrugged, "I'm sure you'll come to a definite conclusion soon. Just… enjoy whatever time you two have left."

Sheva nodded and looked up to Mr. Kennedy, pretending she had been listening the entire time.

Sherry's thoughts turned to Jake. What would she do during gym? Was he even here? She didn't really know, after all she had entered using a different door this time around – expecting him to be near the parking lot.

It didn't matter. If he tried to talk to her she would just ignore him.

**…**

In gym Jake waited for her impatiently. He watched girls filter into the gym and all he could keep thinking about was what he was going to say to her. After all if he went up to her he needed to say _something_.

_I shouldn't have ever made that stupid fucking bet, _he thought as he waited.

_I' m a moron._

Jake waited and waited but eventually realized that Sherry was not there. He wondered if she was absent from school or purposely avoiding him. Both possibilities made him feel worse than he already did.

**…**

When lunchtime came around Jake did his best to not look overeager. So he waited for Chris, impatiently, and scowled at Billy.

"Hey Jake," he muttered, Chris raised a brow at Billy's demure demeanor and looked to Jake who didn't respond. Instantly he stopped walking and crossed his arms in front of himself. Billy turned and stared at Chris with confusion, Jake stopped walking but didn't turn to look at him.

"What's going on? You two are acting weird."

Billy remained silent and Jake looked to him with a sharp glare. It became apparent that none of them had any intent on answering so Jake spoke, "well? Tell him what you did Billy."

"I didn't do anything," Billy defended himself, ignoring the hustling school kids who were brushing past them with annoyance as they stood in the middle of the hallway, "all I did was mention the bet that Jake and I had on Sherry… but then Excella heard and … she told Sherry."

Chris' eyes bulged and he looked between Jake and Billy with shock. Jake remained scowling and Billy continued to stare sheepishly. Chris spoke up, fumbling over his shock, "are you serious?"

"Yeah," Jake snapped, "and now she's not fucking talking to me. She didn't even show to gym today and I don't have to wonder as to why that is."

"You moron," Chris bit back, "this is your fault too for agreeing to it."

"I was drunk!" He defended and stabbed a finger towards Billy, "everything would've been fine had he not opened his goddamn mouth! I mean, what kind of absolutely moron-

"Being drunk off your ass isn't an excuse for the things you do. That's exactly why you shouldn't get so drunk, this isn't the first time that you do stupid shit like this but you never learn do you?" Chris shut his eyes with impatience and then cast them both a glare of equal force, "you two owe her an apology. I can't believe that you two are so fucking stupid."

Jake and Billy didn't respond to the insult and followed him into the lunchroom. Instantly Jake's eyes flew to the table that he expected her to be sitting out. His breath left him in a rush. She was there.

Quietly Chris, Billy, and Jake made their way over to the table. Very aware of the now more obvious tension between them. Sherry was animatedly talking with Sheva and for a moment Jake could would have sworn that she was absolutely fine, like if nothing had happened. But as soon as they made it to the table, and her eyes landed on him – he knew it was only wishful thinking.

Her eyes dimmed it seemed. They tightened the slightest bit and her body did too. Sheva smiled at them all and kissed Chris a bit hungrily on the mouth. Sherry mumbled a meek 'hi' to them all and turned back to Sheva, talking about who-knows-what.

Jake's eyes narrowed and he took a seat in front of her. So that's what she was going to do? Ignore him?

"So, how was your day guys?" Sheva asked innocently, watching them all curiously. They all looked rather tense, and she could have sworn that Billy's face was a deep shade of red and that he actually looked… shy? Humbled? She didn't know, but there was something weird in the air. Even Sherry was unusually quiet, and Chris just looked down at his hands silently. Jake stared at Sherry.

A few more seconds of awkward silence passed and for the longest time all that Sheva could do was stare in shock at them all. What the hell was going on here?

"Hello? Am I talking to myself or something, one of you answer me!"

"Everything's fucking fine," Jake bit harshly, glaring at the top of Sherry's head as if though it had personally offended him, "isn't that right Sherry?"

Now Sherry raised her head and smiled sweetly, "everything's perfect."

Sheva frowned as she looked in between them, _well this is just awkward._

"So tell me," Jake interlaced his fingers almost like a businessman, "are you sick?"

"No."

"Then why weren't you in gym today?" His eyes hardened, "I waited and you didn't show."

"Jake," Sheva interrupted, "do you really have any right to question Sherry like that? You look like an ass right now."

"Its fine Sheva," Sherry smiled softly and took her sandwich in her hands, she bit into it patiently. Jake glared as she took her time chewing, Billy stirred in his seat with discomfort, "I didn't go to gym because I didn't want to. Satisfied?"

His stare became angry, "no, I'm not fucking satisfied."

"Too bad," she shrugged, "it must be sucky to feel disappointed in someone, mhm?"

He gaped at her. Chris began to snicker and Sheva stared between them with shock. She had thought everything was fine, she began to wonder if this was all brought on by Steve Burnside. Was Sherry still annoyed with Jake over that? But that couldn't be it. Billy looked too sheepish to not be involved with this somehow.

Jake spoke, "it's not about that. You know that I wanted to –

"This is really not the time or place to do this Jake," Sherry mumbled softly. Jake glared.

"Then where? You won't fucking pick up my calls or my texts. There is no other place to do this Sherry," his voice hardened again, "you didn't even show to gym so obviously you don't want to talk to me. And now you're telling me that this isn't the place to do this?" His eyes were like flames and she began to tremble where she sat, "so you tell me where you want to do this, because last time I checked this is the only place to do this."

"I'm not going to sit here and let you berate me in front of our friends," Sherry stood up sharply. Sheva's eyes widened as Sherry angrily grabbed her stuff, Jake began to stand as well, "you think that because every girl wants to get in your pants that that means that I have to just forgive you for what you did? Oh, and let me remind you that you haven't even apologized for what you did," she glared at him more openly, "so not Jake, forgive me if I don't feel like sitting in front of you or being in your presence right now. And the way you're acting hardly lets me know that you feel bad for what you did. You act more like I owe YOU and apology for being hurt about being your _bet_."

"What!" Sheva exploded, as Sherry stalked out of the lunchroom. Jake stood there for a few moments as Chris quickly explained everything to Sheva. Then Jake went after Sherry, hot on her heels as she marched through the empty hallways.

"Hey, hey, hey come here!" He took her by the wrist, doing his best to be gentle as she pulled her arm away and continued walking. "Will you just talk to me? Jesus Sherry you'd think I –

"Think you'd what?" She whirled and glared up at him, her eyes were steel and his melted at the heat, "think you used me? Embarrass me? Use me as an object? Dehumanize me for money? Trick me for money? Make me like you for _money_?!"

"It's not like that Sherry," he sighed and ran a hand along the shape of his head with frustration. She crossed her arms, "just let me explain-

"You keep saying that but never cut to the chase," she shook her head, "and you know why Jake? Because there isn't anything to tell. You know what you did, and you can explain all you want, you can tell me why, and the setting, and the state of mind you were in at the time and it wouldn't matter. You know why? Because you have yet to even apologize for it. You just stand there and continue to tell me that I should let you explain why you decided to use me for a bet. But does that change the fact that I was nothing but a bet to you? No."

Jake shoved his hands in his pockets and looked at his boots sheepishly. Sherry shook her head.

"Unbelievable." She muttered and continued to walk away from him, again he went after her.

"Just hear me out. God damn it Sherry stop!" He pulled her by the shoulders and held her against a locker gently, "I was drunk out of my mind. Billy was talking and he got me going and… and I told him that I could get you to kiss me in less than two months," his face heated up with embarrassment, Sherry's lips trembled to hear the words from him, and even now she wanted to slap him and hold him at the same time. He messed her up so badly, "I… I swear I completely forgot about it. Nothing I've experienced with you is fake. I swear to God Sherry." He paused, trying to look for any sympathy in her eyes. Instead he found hurt, and some more hurt.

"I can't do this right now Jake…"

_No, no, no... _He pulled her closer, embracing her small figure and hoping to melt her resolve with this gesture. She felt so good to hold, and she made him laugh and smile and she excited and thrilled him beyond reason. She made him illogical in the best and worst of ways. She made him better.

"I'm sorry, _Chérie_," he squeezed her a bit tighter. She had to forgive him. She _had_ to, right? There were still so many possibilities for them both. So many things that he could imagine them doing.

And if she didn't forgive him… well then she would do those thing with someone else. Someone else would hold her and touch her, kiss her and adore her. And she'd feel all those things back, but not for him.

"It's okay," Sherry mumbled, "I forgive you Jake." His body sagged slightly and she pulled out of his embrace, she cast him a sad smile, "but I think that… I need to be on my own. We rushed into this and –

"What?" His eyebrows knitted together, "what are you saying, you just said you forgave me-

"I do," she nodded, "but I just can't do this right now. I've been… I've been losing sight of things." _Like my irresponsibility when it comes to my father… I've been sneaking out, and partying while my father lays at home in a bed. _Sherry shook her head, she could almost cry at what she believed to be her selfishness, "I'll see you tomorrow Jake…"

"Wait, what?' He grabbed her hand and stared at her with confusion. He felt like the earth had turned itself inside out. "What are you saying Sherry?" is throat was tight, and it was sinking towards his chest, making it hard to breathe.

Her eyes dimmed again and she smiled sadly, "Jake… there are things in my life that I just can't explain to you right now… one day maybe but right now is not the time… There are people who —

"Are you seeing someone?" His gaze darkened dangerously and he stepped forward, when she flinched slightly he persisted, "are you seeing someone?"

"No Jake, you were the only person I was seeing."

"Was?"

"Yes," she swallowed, "I'm really sorry Jake I just think that we shouldn't-

"I don't want your apologies," he spit hotly, "I want you to tell me that you forgive me and that everything will go back to the way it was before yesterday."

"That's not going to happen," she wanted to apologize again but thought better of it, "I've got to go."

"Schools not over yet!" He challenged, Sherry was already walking away from him. It really was making it very hard to focus.

"Yeah well, I'm not feeling well, bye Jake." Sherry continued walking as quickly as she could afraid that he would see the absolutely lack of confidence in her words. If he did stop her she wouldn't be able to continue on pretending she didn't want whatever they had been.

Jake watched her go and with every step that carried her further he grew angrier. His hurt grew at her actions and yet he was more annoyed at his inability to change her mind. It made him feel sick to his stomach. She was really hurt, he understood that now. He could feel it in his limbs like if her pain was his own because it was. Everything that she felt he felt with more guilt, because he was the perpetrator of the crime.

Angrily he drove his fist into the nearest locker over and over. The principle came and demanded that he stop damaging property which he complied with. And that's how Jake ended up in the detention room that afternoon. This time Supergirl didn't rescue him.

* * *

**:O And things are about to get. C.r.a.z.y. in the next two chapters. You know what button to hit darlings! :)**


	29. Ghosts

**Chapter XXIX**

Sherry moved off of the bed with sluggish ease. It wasn't that every muscle in her body hurt, it's that she was simply dreading returning back to school. She didn't want to see him or his anger. It was all so much to handle at such a pivotal time, that she feared she would lash out against him and say something she'd regret later on.

"Are you sure you're up for it?" Sheva asked softly as she stared at Sherry who had gotten dressed in a black shirt and capri green pants. She had found out what happened from Sherry. Part of her wanted to talk to Jake, and tell him that she had a lot on her plate with her father dying. But then she kept remembering that Sherry didn't want many people to know about her situation back home.

"Yeah," Sherry nodded, "it won't be that bad, right?"

Sheva nodded, unsure.

Sherry kissed her father's cool cheek with a soft smile and bid him farewell. Jill waved the two girls goodbye and off they went.

"Do you think that Jake is going to be mad?" Sherry asked when they stepped out of the apartment building and started walking towards the school, "I mean… I know he'll be mad but do you think he'll-

"Lash out on you?" Sheva interrupted, knowing exactly what she meant, "I really don't know. I pick him out to be more of the passive aggressive type, in the time I've known him that is really how he presents himself. But don't worry, I'll put him in his place if he tries to pull any of that shit against you."

"That's really not your place Shev," Sherry smiled softly, "I'll do it."

Sheva grinned at the smaller girl, glad to know that.

**…**

Jake was trying hard to not ask if she was in school today. He really was.

If she was there than he would have to figure something out for lunch, because sitting in front of her would really put a damper on his already shit mood, but if she wasn't there… well that really didn't make him feel any better. It made him feel uneasy, and he didn't know what it was but despite how angry he was he couldn't bring himself to not miss her.

He moved from class to class with ease, always aware of how people stared at him. Had someone heard his confrontation with Sherry? Probably. Their eyes were just begging for answers to their questions, as if though staring at him long enough would satisfy their curiousity. But Jake would give them nothing, and so he kept his eyes on the board, and remained impassive. _Fuck them. _

When it was finally time for gym Jake found himself more inclined than ever to simply skip. He passed by the gym and strolled towards the front of the school silently. His thoughts were trapped on the conversation he had had with his father the night before.

Jake had been sitting on his couch, watching the television absent mindedly, wondering what she was doing and hating himself for it. That's when he felt his father's presence behind him.

Albert Wesker walked around and sat down beside his son silently, staring at the television without interest.

"Long day at work?" Jake asked curiously.

"It always is," his father responded, "why did you punch the school wall?"

Jake answered without missing a beat, "stupid shit."

"I expect an answer nonetheless."

Jake did not want to tell him. It felt too private, too embarrassing. His father was not a man off many romances, and to admit that he had lost his mind over a girl would have made him feel absolutely horrible. But he knew that his father would get it out of him nonetheless, "it's just this girl… Sherry Birkin."

At this he noticed a slightly stiffening of his father's body from his peripheral vision. He knew it, his father would never approve of such a thing. Albert Wesker adjusted his glasses and spoke, "continue."

"She's…" Jake coughed, unsure of how to continue, "a girl who I was… sort of interested in and uh, yesterday she cut it off. It was all just a big misunderstanding."

Albert raised a brow subtly, "sometimes it is best to not get involved with women. They complicate things beyond repair. You have better things in your future. You should not give so much of your thoughts to someone who does not care for them."

"Yeah," Jake nodded. Not agreeing one bit, because that was just it. Sherry did care about his thoughts, she bothered to hear him out and honestly reply, and more importantly she wasn't looking for a quick fuck. _She had honestly been hurt... therefore she had honestly cared._

Now Jake pulled out a cigarette and silently wished for lightning to come strike him. But instead he noticed a blonde female suddenly in the corner of his vision. He knew it wasn't Sherry. If it was Sherry he would have felt her even before she stood so near to him. So when he turned his head and saw Ashley Graham he didn't resist the urge to roll his eyes.

"What the fuck do you want?"

Ashley blushed under the heat of his stare and bit her lip, he assumed she was trying to be cute. But he didn't like her anyway, it did nothing for him. She spoke up, "I-I was wondering if I could have one of those." She pointed to his cigarette.

"You smoke?" He blew out some smoke and squinted as he stared at her. She looked too innocent for all that.

"Sometimes," she admitted shyly.

"Alright," he glared and gave her one, she eyeballed it nervously as if it might explode into flames, and he lit it for her and observed her as she easily blew the smoke out into the air. She tossed him a small smile.

"So," she started, "Sherry and you, huh? I never would have picked you out to be that type of man, Jake Muller."

"You don't fucking know me, so you couldn't," he argued back hotly and glared at her, "don't think I've forgotten about that shit you said to Sheva. You're lucky we got her off of you when we did, otherwise you would have found yourself with some missing teeth. You _and_ Excella."

She rolled her eyes, "whatever. But back to the point. The rumor is that you and Sherry have called it quits." He almost flinched, "are you okay?"

"I'm fucking fine."

"Liar," she smirked, "you aren't fine at all. Look at you, smoking when you should be in class. You know, if you really like her you should not avoid her. That's hardly going to win her heart over."

"Yeah? What do you suggest then?" The question was sarcastic, and yet he really expected an answer.

"I don't now," she shrugged.

Jake stared out at the road for a long time. Thinking.

**…**

When lunch time came around Sherry was already sitting at the table with Sheva, they laughed about the events of the day and when Chris and Billy started making their way over Sherry couldn't help but release a small huff of frustration and relief. It was the most confusing thing she had experienced since Luis.

"Hey Sheva, Sherry," Billy greeted them sheepishly, Sherry smiled simply and then bit into her sandwich as Sheva greeted him and Billy, she didn't bother to ask where Jake was, and no one else mentioned him either.

They all made simple conversation for a long time. They talked about classes, TV, food. Then suddenly they heard what sounded like Jake's chuckling and another high pitched giggle.

"Are you fucking serious?" Chris huffed as he turned his head fully.

Sherry followed his gaze and steeled herself against the sight. Jake was walking with an arm thrown over Ashley's shoulder, just as he had always done with her. The girl had a twinkle in her eyes that Sherry envied and Jake was smirking just slightly towards her. He was doing this on purpose. They all knew it.

"Hell no," Sheva spoke up hotly as they came to a stop at the table, Ashley Graham wrinkled her nose in Sheva's direction, "she's not sitting here."

"She's with me," Jake rolled his eyes and pulled out his chair for Ashley, whose smile broadened. Billy looked extremely uncomfortable and Chris was pinching the bridge of his nose with frustration as Jake pulled a chair out from a nearby table and sat down. He sat down next to Ashley so that they were both in between Chris and Billy and across from Sheva and Sherry.

He leaned back with a satisfied smirk and looked at Sherry, "hi."

"Hi Jake," she smiled easily, much to his annoyance, "what's up?"

_You can play that card all you want Sherry, _Jake's smirk broadened into a small smile as they both played their little game.

"Nothing much Sherry, I was out having a smoke and Ashley joined me, how was gym?"

"Perfect," she grinned, "never better."

The comment made Sheva smile as she turned her eyes onto Ashley, "and what do you think you're doing here? Oh and love the skirt by the way," Sheva lied.

"So _fetch_," Sherry smirked, quoting Mean Girls and making Sheva burst into a small chuckle.

"Jake invited me," the other blonde glared, "so I can sit here-

"Well see that's just it," Sheva smiled, ignoring Chris' look, pleading with her to control her temper, "you can't sit here. We don't _want_ you here."

"_I_ want her here," Jake stared at her, "and she stays."

The table remained silent and Sherry continued to stare at her Ashley impassively. The girl was beaming up at Jake, and for a long time Sherry wondered if Ashley really thought that Jake was interested in her. _But… maybe he is? _

Ashley babbled with Jake and Billy about her day, and how much she hated having to take chemistry. Chris looked like he was in pain listening to her and Sheva did her best to keep her mouth shut. Jake feigned interest and Billy remained silent, embarrassed at the whole situation. He blamed himself fully, and could hardly sit at the table anymore. But it was when Ashley began talking about Mr. Kennedy that Sherry had finally had enough.

"He's just unreasonable," Ashley stated, "I mean, why couldn't he raise my 96 to a 100. It's just four points."

"That wasn't your grade," Sherry stated firmly.

"Yeah but it could have been if he'd just raise it," Ashley rolled her eyes as if Sherry was the stupidest person on earth, "he is just unreasonable."

"_You're_ unreasonable," Sherry continued, ignoring the glare Jake shot her way, "if you want a 100 then study for it. Don't blame the teacher for not giving you that grade when in reality it's your fault."

"What are you, like in love with him or something?" Ashley challenged.

"Oh, that's rich," Sherry rolled her eyes.

"It's just the truth I mean you're getting all uppity about-

"She's not in love with him," Jake muttered with anger.

"Yeah she could've fooled me," Ashley glared at Sherry as Sheva quaked with anger, "I mean look at you. What are you even wearing? You're dressed like if you're going into the military or something. Green cargo capri pants and a black tee-shirt? And that short hair makes you look like a boy. Are you trying to show off for Mr. Kennedy? Trying to look unique?"

"Ashley," Jake statement was warning. Sherry was starting to blush red hot.

"Mr. Kennedy is an asshole," Ashley stated firmly, "and the fact that you're sitting here defending him like if he meant that much to you shows that there's more to this student- teacher relationship. I mean, sure he might not like you, but clearly you like him a lot or something. But what, do you think you can change his mind about you? Do you think he'll like you?"

"Shut up," Jake glared at her.

"Honestly, who would?" She smirked then, "the only guy you could have gotten was on a bet, and even that stopped."

Sherry stood up in a rush and slammed her fist into the table, everyone's eyes darted to her with shock at the abrupt noise.

"And you're a spoiled little brat who thinks she owns the school," Sherry hissed with rage, "you're lucky I don't fly over this table and smash your face in. You stupid, selfish, little bitch."

In a rage she grabbed her notebook and bags, ignoring the stares she was getting and she promptly stormed out of the cafeteria.

Sherry made a mad dash towards Mr. Kennedy's room. Her blood was warmer then usual, and her eyes were stinging with the possibility to tears from the adrenaline rushing through her system. When she got there she found him sitting in his chair, grading papers silently and alone. She pulled the door open.

"Sherry?" he raised his eyes to her with confusion, and stood, "how many I help you.  
Sherry shut the door and strode forward until she stood in front of his mahogany desk, "are you alright?"

"Yes," she breathed, still shocked at her behavior, "I just… I just need to get away from everyone for a few minutes. Can I stay here? Please?"

He nodded and she smiled gratefully and took a seat, he sat in his chair again and folded his hands, "is there anything I can help you with?"

She shook her head, "no. I just have a lot on my plate right now. Sometimes the silence is… better then talking."

He smiled and nodded in agreement, "yes it is."

**…**

"Is she a psycho?" Ashley laughed at the sight of Sherry storming out. Everyone was shaking in anger, but none more than Jake.

"Get out of here," he glared at her. Her eyes bulged with confusion and she silently stood, trembling with fear, then she walked away, embarrassed.

"You need to stop this shit," Chris glared at Jake, "I know that you and Sherry aren't on the best of terms but what you're doing is really not going to help anything."

"It's not that simple, okay?" Jake glared, "she won't forgive me. She says that she has a lot on her plate right now but I know that she's just lying and covering up the fact that she is angry with me-

"How can you be so selfish?" Sheva glared at him, "Jake there are a lot of things going on in her house hold right now? Okay?"

"Like what?" He challenged, thinking back to the coins he had found in her dresser and wondering if it had anything to do with that.

Sheva bit her lip nervously and then shook her head, "I'm sorry… I can't tell you."

Jake stared, annoyed, "then I'll figure it out by myself."

**…**

Albert Wesker stared down at William Birkin impassively as the dying old man absorbed all the information he had just told him. It seemed impossible to William that so many things were possible, but he trusted Albert Wesker. The man was absolutely brilliant, although slightly deranged. He licked his cracked lips and changed the subject to something of grave importance.

"You have to take care of her Albert. She won't survive it on her own."

"I cannot force her into my home. Especially not after she realizes that my son is the same boy who you were so adamant she stay away from. Can you imagine what my household will be like with two hormonal 18 year olds?"

"Please," William begged, "she tries to be strong but if she is left to her own grief she will regress."

"I will do what I can."

William's hand dashed out and he grabbed onto his friends wrist tightly. Albert's cold expression remained, "be vigilant of her. She will look for comfort in the wrong people. She might return to Luis if she is left to her own vices."

"Perhaps she wouldn't if you had not insisted that she leave my son," Albert's tone was harsh, "let's not forget that my son has never been addicted to drugs, it was your daughter."

William flinched at the memories, "yes… I know."

Albert narrowed his eyes, "I have appointments to set up."

"Goodbye Wesker," William breathed softly.

Albert stared down at the man for a long time, observing his skinny body and gaunt face. The hair had finished withering off his head. "You say goodbye as if though it will be the last time we see one another."

"Perhaps it might be," William murmured, "if this," he signaled to the IV running with a blue serum, "does what it is supposed to then it might as well be."

"Yes," Albert nodded, then looked down at his friend and laid a hand on his shoulder, William smiled up at him, and small tears were in his eyes, "goodbye William."

"Goodbye Albert. Remember all we have discussed."

Albert nodded and left his friend. Inside his room William began writing a letter to his daughter.

* * *

**:o Tis' going down. You know what button to press!**

**What do you all think about Jake's little stunt? **

**And Sherry defending Mr. Kennedy? O_O **

**And more importantly, you just got a very important piece of Sherry's past. **

**Tell me what you thought! **


	30. Rip Tide

**Chapter XXX**

Sherry woke up that morning drowsily. The events from the day before had left her with a sour taste in her mouth. She still couldn't believe that she had lost her temper with Ashley and cursed at her the way she did, and yet she couldn't bring herself to regret the words either. She knew that the girl deserved them, and it was this that let her sleep that night.

When Sherry entered her fathers room she found him staring at the television, laughing at something Jim Carrey was saying.

"I'm going to school dad," she smiled softly, trying to not get sucked into how horrible he looked.

His eyes rolled over to her and he cast her a bright smile, "okay, bye sweetheart. Have a good day. I love you."

"Love you too dad," she kissed his cheek gently, allowing him to hold her in the process and after an unusually long moment she left the room, blowing him a kiss on her way out. Sheva and Sherry waved goodbye to Jill and made their way down the stairs.

As soon as they hit the street they were speaking of yesterday's events.

"That was nuts," Sheva clapped excitedly, there was an extra pep in her step, "you totally shut her up."

"She had it coming to her," Sherry shrugged, "I usually don't talk like that to people but… wow she was pushing it."

"She needed to hear it," the girl beside her laughed, "and you should have seen Jake after you left. He kicked her out of the table. He probably feels like shit. Has he tried to contact you ever since then?"

"No," Sherry shrugged, "I think he knows that I'm not going to pick up."

Sheva agreed silently and they continued discussing the day's events.

When Sherry made it to school she made sure to take another entrance than usual in hopes of not encountering Jake. Somewhere she was hoping that she would be forced to confront him again. There was something pleasing about speaking to him, even if it wasn't pleasant conversation.

During first period Sherry kept her eyes trained on the board. The lesson itself was not very hard to grasp, and because of that her thoughts kept floating back to Jake.

She hated feeling like this, it was like no matter what she did he popped into her head, uninvited, but not unwanted.

**…**

Jake entered the school building late.

It had been a rough morning. He had drank right before knocking out on his couch and woke up in a rush.

He hoped he didn't reek of beer.

Quietly he entered the attendance office and went to the front desk. The woman there had a look on her face that made him instantly nervous. She was not in a mood to be trifled with today. Quietly he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the white desk that stretched out to both sides of the large office, he spoke in a low voice, "Jake Muller. I came in late."

"You usually are late Jake Muller," the woman bit back, looking up at him with her dark eyes through her red glasses, "you stopped for a while, what's changed?"

_Sherry's changed_, he thought, _there isn't any reason for me to be here on time if she's not going to be there to keep me company. _He thought it but only frowned at her, "that's not your business lady."

She smirked, "take a seat right over there while I write up a slip."

Jake huffed and took a seat on the bench silently.

From where he sat he could see the principal's office. The man was on the phone, frowning delicately. He was always frowning.

Suddenly the man stood and stuck his head out the door, he turned his eyes to the woman who was busy talking to a parent on the phone instead of writing up Jake's slip, "call in Sherry Birkin, it's an emergency." At this Jake's body stiffened to attention, "I want her in here now, I don't care if she's taking a test, or anything. Get her in here."

The woman frowned and nodded, telling the parent on the phone to please hold.

_What the fuck? _Jake turned his eyes on the woman as she searched for what Jake believed to be Sherry's schedule so that she might ring the right classroom.

"She's with Mr. Kennedy," Jake informed her, clenching his toes in his boots from anticipation. _What the hell is going on? _ Jake wondered quietly as the woman eyeballed him, "I know her schedule okay, that's where she is. Trust me."

The woman nodded and dialed Mr. Kennedy's room. A few silent moments passed and Jake watched with interest.

"Can you please send Sherry Birkin down? It is urgent. The principal's office. Yes… Thank you." The woman hung up and in the principles room Jake noticed that the man was rubbing his forehead nervously.

_Did Sherry do something? This probably has to do with Ashley. Why did I bring her to the table? The girl is nothing but trouble, and annoying, god and that voice! Jesus I'm shocked I didn't curse her out myself…_

A few more moments passed, and by then Jake was tapping his foot restlessly. He hoped that the woman would take her time writing up the slip because he really wanted to see what was going on with Sherry. And it seemed that she was in no rush because she was too busy staring at the principle as he paced in his small office. Her stare was just as nervous as the man looked. It only made Jake more anxious.

Out of the corner of his eye Jake noticed Sherry Birkin enter the office. Her blonde hair was in its usual neat disarray and she let her eyes roam to the woman at the front desk and then she found Jake.

Their eyes locked for a long moment and she frowned, wondering if it had something to do with him. Jake tried hard to remain impassive, he didn't know if he should smile or frown or wave.

"Hi, I was called down here?" Sherry asked nervously as she went up to the woman who looked up at her strangely, warily.

"Yes, the principle-

"Sherry Birkin," the principle stuck his head out the door. Jake frowned with interest, "can you please join me. Mrs. Toil please hold my calls." The woman nodded silently and Sherry cast her a nervous glance before following the man into his room. Jake watched her enter and then he shut the door, and then to Jake anger he closed the blinds, blocking him out.

**…**

Sherry sat in the chair silently, staring at the man from across the desk with unease. Her stomach was tightening with every passing moment. He wasn't even really looking at her as much as nervously glancing around the room.

What could this be about?

"Sir?" Sherry started softly, "why was I called down here?"

He raised his eyes to her carefully, they were jittery. And they were making Sherry more nervous.

His gaze was too telling, too morose, too sheepish… Her throat tightened horribly. Her hands became clammy and her tongue was like led.

"Is…" she stopped talking as her voice cracked.

It couldn't be… could it?

"Is it…"

"Your father," the man nodded solemnly, noticing how her eyes burst red in an instant. Her breathing picked up and her lips began to tremble, "he passed away sometime after you left for school this morning Sherry. I am so sorry."

It felt like a million bricks were dropping onto her chest. Her breath left her in one motion and she suddenly couldn't remember how to breathe. She could feel her skin getting horribly hot. Her temples were throbbing.

Gone.

He was gone, just like that his life was snuffed out. Her father was dead, and she was still here, alone.

She ran a hand along her forehead trembling. Trying to remain composed.

_I should have known… I should have known… oh God, why? _

"Gone?" The words squeaked out of her. She needed to breathe, she knew it, she was yelling it in her head. She needed to breathe because it suddenly felt like she was suffocating. And the man in front of her was blurring.

Sherry stood with a burst of energy. Shaking with hurt. She needed to get out of here. She needed to go home, to see him.

"My dad… my dad," she dashed the tears out of her eyes furiously before they could fall. No. She would not cry.

He wouldn't want that.

But did it matter anymore?

The man was trying to calm her and walking towards her but she was too scared, too alone. The fear gripping her heart was making it hard to even think straight. All she was aware of was the thudding of her pulse, the horrible pounding in her head. The sudden heat on her skin and the knowledge that he had died alone and without her.

"Oh God!" She whimpered and dug the heel of her hands into her eyes so hard that it hurt, "No… no!"

"Sherry, I am so sorry for your loss."

This had to be a dream.

**…**

"What the fuck is going on in there?" Jake hissed as he came to a stand. He could hear what sounded like bickering.

"Sherry please breathe-

"No, no, no-

"Sherry-

"It can't be… It's all my fault, it's all my fault!"

The next moment the door burst open and Sherry came rushing out. Mrs. Toil stood frantically as Sherry rushed passed her. Her eyes were bright red and blue, her face was pink as well. The distress was painted on her face in violent shades of red. Jake made a grab at her instantly, confused.

"Sherry-

"Let go," she pleaded softly and pulled away. Jake instantly released her as the principle came rushing out and Sherry escaped the office. Jake was hot on her heels and following her down the school hallway. His heart was in his throat.

"Sherry!" He rushed after her as she jogged down the hallway. Every step was faster than the last. _What the fuck is going on! _"Sherry stop!" He called again and this time she whirled around to face him. Unshed tears brimmed just on the verge of falling. Her face was heart breaking and she was shaking so hard that he couldn't help but reach out and grasp her shoulders. She was frightening him, she was making his very bones hurt from anxiety, "what's wrong?"

"It can't be true," she whispered, squeaked and croaked, "because if it were true then-then it would not have been so abrupt right? It… I – I should have been there. I wasn't there—

"What's wrong?" He could hear the trembling in his voice, the fierce determination to make it better. Behind him he could hear the principle jogging up close, "Sherry please just tell me." He begged quietly, grasping her shoulder more tightly. What had her so worked up?

In one soft whimper she spoke. It shattered whatever control she might have had, "my dad…" she began to quake in earnest, and the principle was on the phone dialing 911 as Sherry's breath became labored, "my dad… he died—"

Immediately he embraced her, pulling her tightly to his chest and holding her firmly. Her small body sagged against him as he kissed her hair softly. The words died in her throat. He didn't need to hear any more. He was there to share her hurt.

"I-I-I can't breathe."

"Sherry," Jake tried to remain calm as he pulled away and held her firmly by the arms, "breathe slowly."

"My dad—

"Sherry?!" Her body seized, then went limp. "Fuck!"

In one motion she sagged down, her eyes shut and the principle was at their side, helping Jake lay her onto her back. His heart was thudding violently in his chest. He didn't know what to do. Suddenly her eyes opened and she gasped once as Jake pushed her back down to the tile. Her eyes were open but unseeing, she was staring at the ceiling without staring at all. Her breathing was quick and shallow, her hands trembled so hard that he couldn't keep them still.

"Call 911!" The principle ordered Mrs. Toil who had come out of the office.

"Jake I can't breathe," she croaked gently as he pulled her into his arms and held her, leaning against the locker and pulling her onto his lap as she folded in on herself, allowing him to hold her, "I can't breathe—

"Shh," he kissed her forehead and nestled her face into his neck, "relax baby."

"_I can't breathe_."

"The ambulance is on their way," Mrs. Toil stated as she came to their side. Sherry was trembling in Muller's protective grasp, and the Principle stood there, unable to interrupt for fear that she might slip back into whatever had almost taken hold of her.

Sherry couldn't think of anything but the fact that he was gone. That word kept chanting itself like in a bad book. Over and over she found herself thinking of the permanence of death. The fact that his existence no longer mattered. That he was forever gone. Soon there would be a funeral. And she would have to stand there, alone, without a mother at her side, or an uncle to console her, no family members. Just her and her dead father. And once he was in the ground then she would stand there alone and return to a broken home with no one.

His clothes would be there… and his bed. His medicine, his television, his favorite juice and soups. All of it would remain as a reminder that he was not there but she was.

Sherry buried her face into Jake's face more firmly and suddenly a hard sob ripped right through her.

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**...**

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	31. What You Need

**Chapter XXXI**

Jake cradled Sherry firmly, trembling along with her shaking body as the paramedics surrounded them. Her breathing had become shallow, and it seemed to him that she was trying to voice this but every time she tried she would only cry harder.

"You need to release her," the paramedic stated softly at Jake, trying to make him understand, "she might go into a panic attack, do you understand?"

Jake nodded but only barely. How could he let her go when she wanted him to stay? And she felt so horribly small, so tiny… carefully Jake loosened his hold on her and she began trembling harder but he couldn't take her back because already the paramedics were lifting her onto the stretcher. She didn't fight them, she just shook and cried as they placed an oxygen mask over her face and tried to calm her down. The principle pulled at his thin hair and Jake stood shakily.

"Who are you to her?" The male paramedic asked Jake.

What was he? He lied, "I'm her boyfriend."

"Okay, can you come with us to the hospital, it might help for her to have a familiar face. We'll release her once she's stable enough and she'll need a way to get home."

Jake nodded and swallowed the lump in his throat. The principle began speaking to Jake quickly, "here's my number, call me to inform me that you have both returned to her home safely," he wrote down his number quickly and handed it to Jake who stared at him for a long moment before nodding and following the paramedics out.

**…**

When they arrived at the hospital Jake was more than aware of Sherry's unresponsive attitude. Her eyes were shut and she seemed to be sleeping.

"Why is she like that?" he asked the nurse from where he sat in the hospital room, "she's okay right?"

"Yes young man," the man stated, looking over at Sherry carefully, "she's just unconscious at the moment. We imagine that whatever set her off put her under a lot of stress at the moment. She should be waking up soon. We sedated her."

Jake nodded and quietly leaned back in his chair as the man adjusted Sherry's head on the pillow, then he left them alone. Immediately Jake pulled his chair closer to Sherry's side and took her hand.

She looked absolutely terrible. Her face was stained with tear tracks that had reddened her flesh when she had tried so hard to dash them away. He couldn't stop staring at her. What had happened? What had killed her father?

Jake pondered all the different possibility for a matter of hours before the door quietly opened. He stood, immediately defensive at the thought that a doctor might be coming to kick him out. But it was Sheva and Chris who stepped inside.

Sheva's eyes landed on Sherry and she rushed over, immediately placing her hand on Sherry's forehead and gently stroking her hair.

"What happened?" Chris whispered softly, shutting the door behind him, "we heard about the rumors in school and when we asked around kids saw Sherry being taken out on the stretcher from the windows. We heard that you tagged along so we came –

"Her father died," Jake muttered, taking a seat and then her hand.

Sheva raised her eyes and stared at Jake, "what?"

"Her father… the man –

"Oh God," Sheva clapped a hand over her mouth and her eyes watered, "…oh god… it was the cancer. It—

"What?" Jake stood up, "what did you say?"

"Her father h-he was dying from cancer. She—

"You didn't think to tell me!" Jake raised his voice and Chris placed a hand on his shoulder tightly, warning him as he cocked his head towards Sherry. Jake lowered his voice and glared at Sheva, "don't you think that that's something that I should know? Didn't you think that she might want someone to talk to –

"Since when is it my duty to break secrets?" Sheva hissed quietly, "if she didn't want to tell you its not my business to tell you."

"Oh God," Jake dropped his head to his hands and sat back down. Trying to understand the information he was being bombarded with. _Why wouldn't she want to tell me? I could have helped her and talk to her… Jesus Sherry…_

Angrily Jake raised his eyes to Sherry who was still sleeping. Sheva shut her eyes and sighed heavily, "Chris tonight I'm going to have to stay with Sherry… just to make sure that she's okay.. .you know what I should probably go to the apartment right now. Just to make sure that things are… in order…"

Chris nodded, "Jake you'll take Sherry home right?"

"Yeah," Jake nodded, "I'll call a cab."

"We'll see you in her apartment." Chris gave Sherry a sad look and then led Sheva out the door, leaving Sherry and Jake alone once again.

**…**

Jake had begun to daze off some minutes after his friends left. His thoughts had all been locked in on Sherry, wondering when it was that she would wake up and what else she was keeping from him. He felt that if she was keeping something like her father's cancer from him that there was certainly more that she was hiding.

Suddenly Sherry began to stir awake.

Instantly Jake was at her side, taking her hand in his and stroking her face gently, hoping that she didn't mind the rough texture of his knuckles, his throat felt tight as he began to speak, "Sherry? Sherry can you hear me?"

Sherry released a soft breath and her eyes open slowly.

A sting went through Jake's chest at the sight of the red quality they had. Not only that but her eyes looked confused, as if she couldn't remember what had happened. And he really hoped that she did because he didn't want to be the one to explain what had happened and break her heart all over again.

"Jake?"

"Yeah, it's me," he smiled softly with relief, "how are you feeling?"

"My head hurts," she croaked unevenly, then her eyes roamed the whiteness of the room before settling back on him, "where are we?"

"We're in the hospital," he explained, "you passed out in school and the paramedics wanted to bring you in… just to make sure that you were okay."

She frowned slightly as he said the words. Her eyes focused in on him for a long moment and then it appeared that the memories flooded back into her head as her lips began to tremble. Then she began to sniffle, "I want to go home."

"I'll take you," he nodded quietly and began to step out towards the room. He spied a nurse and asked her to please come in as they needed to get home. She nodded and told him she would be there in a second, Jake closed the door and went back to Sherry's side as she looked down at her hands, trying so hard to keep it together. Her face was becoming tomato red.

Jake took a seat on the bed and placed his hand on the other side of her thigh, "hey, look at me." Jake lifted her face up so that she would look at him, "Sherry… it's going to be alright…"

"Is it Jake?" Her eyes watered again, "I don't think it is."

"Sherry-

"Miss Birkin." A nurse came in, she walked with a kind smile to Sherry side and Jake released her face reluctantly, "you're all ready to go home?"

_Home_, Sherry almost laughed at the word. It was no longer a home. "Yes."

"Alright, well we are just going to get you your release forms and you'll be all ready to go…" She paused and looked from Jake to Sherry, "you're going to drive her home right? I see here," she looked down at her papers, "that you're her boyfriend."

Jake gave an awkward cough and nodded, not daring to look at Sherry as the woman nodded and promised to be back soon with the release forms. Jake and Sherry said nothing, he just looked at her as she stared down at her hands.

She looked like hell.

In truth Sherry didn't want to go home. She didn't want to be reminded of her father's face, and she certainly did not want to be reminded of the fact that she had not been there. And where was his body? God, Sherry couldn't even think about it with burying her face into her hands and breaking into a shallow breaths. She had to control herself, at least until she got home.

And where was Jill?

When the nurse came in she gave Sherry her forms which she signed without really looking at her signature at all. It was like one straight line. Jake raised a brow at this but said nothing and then helped her out of the bed.

As they made their way towards the elevator they were completely silent. Jake used this opportunity to call a cab. They told him they would be there in a matter of minutes.

In the elevator Sherry wrapped her arms around herself and kept her eyes trained on the numbers. Anything to distract her from what was surrounding her. Her father was dead, and now she would have to go home and face that stone cold reality of that.

"Sherry," Jake's voice was tender, and for the first time she felt as if though all she wanted was for him to never stop talking, "I'm so sorry—

"Please don't say that," she whispered and looked in his direction as he came towards her in the small elevator, "if you say that it's only going to make me cry."

"You can cry," he said, lifting a hand and touching her face delicately, "there's nothing wrong with that Sherry."

She shook her head and bit her lip as the elevator landed on their floor, "I don't want to cry."

Jake nodded and took her hand in his – thrilled that she let him. Quietly he led her out of the hospital and they silently waited for the cab outside. Jake tried to not stare at her, knowing it was rude. But she was making him so scared. She was like a ball of emotions and she never wanted to let any of it out.

When the cab arrived they entered it silently and Sherry whispered her address, forcing the man to ask her to repeat it which Jake did for her.

In the cab Sherry leaned her forehead against the cool glass and stared out at the darkening sky. How long had she been in the hospital? She didn't dare to ask.

Beside her Jake took her by the shoulder and tucked her into his side, which she was grateful for. He kissed her forehead softly, noticing how she leaned into him and then tucked her head into his neck, briefly shutting her eyes.

When the car landed outside her apartment Jake paid the driver and Sherry exited the car with him behind her. She noticed Chris' car parked out there but not Jake's bike. She was about to ask him about that but didn't have the energy. Quietly she made it to the front door and stuck the key in.

"Thank you Jake," she whispered, turning around and staring up at him, "for everything."

Jake sighed heavily and embraced her. She stayed very still for a long time, trying to not cry. The overwhelming pressure of today's events were making her numb. And mindless.

"You know I care for you right?" He murmured gently, she just pressed herself closer, "I'm here for you, even if you don't want me to be. You need me here, you've been doing this thing too long on your own," his voice became gruff, "you need me here."

"I don't," she squeaked softly, "I can be on my own, I-I have to be-my dad—I –

"Stop, Jesus Sherry just stop being so fucking strong all the time," he grasped her by the shoulders and stared down at her, his eyes were pained. She looked so cracked, like if it was taking everything in her to not break down again – and he knew this to be the case, "I don't want you to feel like you have to bottle everything up Sherry. It's not fucking right!"

"It's who I am," she shook her head, "my problems aren't yours Jake-

"I want them to be," he held her tighter at arm's length, "you can't keep pretending that you can just do this on your own. You can't."

"I will."

"You won't."

They stared at one another for a long time, and she swallowed at the determined look on his face.

Without a word Sherry turned around and opened the door. Wordlessly Jake followed her into the apartment building and silently followed her up the stairs, unsure of what he was doing but knowing he'd need a ride home anyway. _Does she even realize that I'm right behind her? She seems stuck in her own world… God, why wasn't I warned about her father? I would have spoken to her. I would have helped but Jesus… was this what she meant when she had originally told me that there were things going on in her life? _

_What else isn't she telling me? _

When they made it to Sherry's door she turned around and stared up at him, almost expectantly. _Does she want me to leave…? I can't do that. _

"Don't make me go," Jake murmured gently, stuffing his hands in his pockets, "I can't be worrying about you all night Sherry…"

"Sheva will be here—

"_I_ need to be here… with you," he murmured, "please."

Sherry swallowed the knot in her throat. Thinking about her father… what would he say? Well the answer was obvious… he would say no.

But she didn't have the energy to turn Jake away. She didn't want to.

"Okay," she quietly turned around and opened the door with a hard breath.

Immediately her eyes came into contact with Chris and Sheva who were sitting on the couch in silence. Sheva stood and turned around, and as Sherry and Jake stepped forward it felt like the weight of reality came crashing down on her once again.

They all stood there in silence for a long moment before Chris and Sheva spoke up, giving her their condolences.

Sherry didn't seem to hear them at all but she gave them a kind and thankful smile anyway.

"Let's get you to bed okay?" Jake murmured softly and wrapped an arm around Sherry's waist, trying to not become transfixed with the apartment itself. He had never been outside of her bedroom, but it had her flair to it.

As Sherry and Jake walked to her room it seemed to him that she was blindly stumbling forward. She almost banged into her door had he not held her firmly at the waist and pushed the door open for her.

Once in there Sherry sat on the bed silently and stared at her hands. Sheva entered the room, her eyes red and shiny with tears.

"Do you want to change your clothes?" Sheva asked her softly, kneeling before her and taking her hands soothingly. Jake stared on with apprehension. He didn't want to leave her for a moment.

"Yeah…" Sherry sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"Okay, Jake can you—

"Yeah, yeah," Jake quickly rushed over to the drawer Sheva was pointing at and pulled out sweats and a shirt, he held them out, "are these okay?"

Sherry smiled and nodded then stood, "okay, I'll be right out. Help yourselves to anything you might want to eat… Chris can stay if he wants to Sheva—

"Honey, just worry about yourself right now okay?" Sheva frowned delicately. Jake crossed his arms at Sherry but said nothing as she nodded compliantly and turned to the sleepwear he had picked out for her.

Jake and Sheva escaped into the living room where Chris was staring at a picture of Sherry and her father, Jake stopped in front of it and smirked. She was very young in the photograph, she looked so cute. He stared at her father a little longer though.

"Jake are you staying?" Sheva asked from the kitchen.

"Yeah, I don't want to leave her alone."

"Okay… well, Chris?"

"If you don't mind I want to stay," he looked to Sheva, "I know that tomorrow is going to be hell for her. I want to be able to help as immediately as I can. We're definitely skipping the day right?"

"Fuck yes," Jake nodded, "the principle will understand." He remembered that the man wanted to make sure that they were home okay and texted him which he found strange but knew that the man was only worried about their safety. Then he texted his father: **A friend had an emergency. Staying with her tonight.**

"Did Sherry eat today?" Sheva asked quietly.

"No, she didn't."

"She'd like grilled cheese right?"

"Yeah," Jake murmured offhandedly and stared at the picture again. Her father was young in the photograph, and his eyes were as blue as Sherry's. There was something so familiar about him…

Jake and Chris took a seat as Jake's phone began to ring. Quickly he picked it up, not surprised that his father would be so prompt.

"Hello?"

"An emergency of what sort?" Albert Wesker's cold emotionless voice spoke out.

"Her father," Jake lowered his tone, "he passed away. She's a wreck."

"Mhm, pass on my condolences. Will you be gone for the rest of the day tomorrow as well?"

"Maybe," Jake muttered, "I don't know though."

"Well, inform me about your whereabouts should you leave for very long. Good night."

"Night," Jake muttered and put the phone down.

Minutes past and Jake grew impatient. He stood and marched to Sherry's door and knocked it quietly, "Sherry are you done?" When she did not respond he grew very nervous, she wouldn't hurt herself right? "Sherry?"

Again no response.

Jake pushed the door open without thinking twice and was about to barge in when he came to a complete halt. Sherry was laying on her side, sleeping. Quietly Jake stepped forward and shut the door behind him. Sherry did not stir at all.

Jake turned off her light and pulled the covers over her, she didn't move at all and he decided that she must have been horribly tired or faking to be asleep. No matter, he knew she wanted to be alone, he kissed her cheek gently and left her.

That night Chris took the floor alongside Jake. Sheva took the couch. None of them could really sleep, they were all too busy thinking about Sherry in the next room over.

Jake was asking himself questions over and over, _where's Sherry's mom...? and why does her father look so familiar?_

It was as Jake continued looking at the picture that he realized where he had seen that man before.

That same man was standing beside his father and colleagues in a picture in his home.

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	32. What You Want

**Chapter XXXII**

"Is she awake?" Jake asked as Sheva stepped out of Sherry's room with a serious expression on her face. It was 1 in the afternoon, and admittedly they had all slept late, but after hearing no sounds from Sherry's room they had all gotten worried.

"Yeah, she's just talking to someone on the phone, asking about her father's body and where it is. Chris," Sheva looked to Chris with a sad look, "can you call some funeral establishments? I don't want Sherry to be the one who has to do that."

"Yeah, yeah, what do you need?"

Sheva ran down the list and Chris immediately got to it, she kissed him thankfully and then Jake stood up, his voice still hoarse from having just woken up, "what can I do?"

"You can be there for her," Sheva stated, "just make sure that whatever she needs you're there for her. I'm going to handle the household stuff, you know. Making sure she's eating, stuff like that. But she needs you. You know that."

Jake nodded, almost sheepishly and stepped past Sheva, clearing his throat as he approached Sherry's door and tentatively rapt his knuckles against it.

"Come in!" She called from inside, in a rather normal voice – which disturbed him.

Jake entered her room cautiously at first, as if something might happen if he entered it too quickly. Sherry was sitting on her bed, cross legged with a notebook in front of her. She smiled meekly at him and turned her attention back to the person on the phone.

"Yes, and when will his body be ready?" She pinched the bridge of her nose, "okay. Yes… yes… thank you."

She hung up the phone and then looked towards Jake with a tired and red stare.

"Did you sleep at all last night Sherry?" Jake asked her softly, wondering if she had been crying or if she was just tired, he was willing to bet that it was both but a concrete answer would have been nice nonetheless.

"I just didn't sleep," she assured him quietly and then turned her attention back to her phone as he stepped closer, "I need to make a few calls… not many… just a few… to let people know.. that..."

"I know," Jake muttered, not wanting her to say it for fear that she would break down. Suddenly, that was the last thing he wanted. He sat on her bed and looked down at the notebook. He could see a bunch of numbers and names written down. Some were checked out, signaling to him that those were the ones she had called. But there was one, right in the middle that was unchecked, and yet the numbers before and after it were checked. It read, **Luis**_. _

"Do you want me to call someone for you?"

"No," she shook her head and sighed, "I'm just … I just have to do this."

Jake nodded understanding. Then looked at her. She looked very tired. Like if she wasn't even really there. A ghost of who she was.

The truth was that Sherry felt lost. Lost in the worst of ways. She didn't know where to begin with the funeral arrangements, she didn't know how she would be able to come home without seeing him, or how to explain that her father was gone and worst of all she was feeling urges to do things she hadn't done in a long time.

"Hey," Jake raised her face so that she would look at him. His eyes were intense, focused and confused, "you know its okay to not be okay right?"

"Yeah, yeah," she mumbled. He knew she was lying.

Cautiously he leaned forward, needing her to know how much he still wanted her near to him. Gently Jake kissed her lips, Sherry leaned into shyly and sighed with content, "tell me what to do for you baby…"

"There's nothing to do Jake," she mumbled around his mouth, opening her eyes and pulling back, her eyes had gone empty, "there's just nothing to do."

"There has to be something," he wished he had let his hair grow out just so that he could pull it from frustration, "there just has to be. I can't just sit hear Sherry let me just do something for you, please I'll fucking run your bath but just tell me what to do."

Sherry shook her head with a smile, "Jake, you can't help me right now."

The words crushed him because he knew they were true. There was nothing he could do to ease whatever she felt, and nothing he could do to really make the process easier.

"God Sherry," he breathed and embraced her, she stiffened but allowed him to pull her onto his lap, almost instantly after she melted and leaned into him, trembling, "I'm so sorry about this."

"It's not your fault," she breathed, "it's not anyone's fault."

He nodded in agreement and hugged her tighter, loving the way her body accepted him, "I'm also sorry about everything I did. I fucking care about you. I don't ever want to see you…" he swallowed the lump in his throat, "hurting. I don't _ever_ want to see that."

"I know," Sherry murmured, "I know that now."

"Don't forget it," he murmured and kissed her temple, "why don't you go take a hot shower. It's going to make you feel so much better."

"Yeah, I think you're right."

She climbed off of his lap, blinking at the soreness of her eyes and then walking towards her drawer. He watched her pick out a few things and then she absently tossed him a smile and left the room. He heard her entering the bathroom and then she turned on the bath water.

Curiously Jake looked back down at her notebook and looked at the names. A lot of the names were just companies but that one name, _Luis_, interested him. He noticed his last name was also written and he narrowed his eyes in on it curiously. _Luis Sera. _

Who was that?

**…**

It was a while before Sherry came out of the shower. Her hair was dripping wet and her skin was flushed a slightly pink tone from the heat of the water. Jake was still sitting on her bed and had worked up the courage to ask her about _Luis Sera. _

"Sherry," Jake started as Sherry searched for some socks in her drawers, "can I ask you something?"

"Yeah, of course," she murmured softly and turned around, giving him her full attention.

"Who's this guy?" Jake asked, lifting her notebook and pointing at the name.

He noticed her hands tighten the slightest bit and so did her eyes. Clearly it meant something to her, otherwise she would have just answered. But she stood there for a few seconds, as if searching for a way to explain.

"He's… an ex-boyfriend of mine."

Jake frowned with confusion, "why is he written here with all these other names?"

"I-I don't know," she shrugged, "I've been trying to answer that for myself as well. I'm not sure if I want to tell him… about my dad I mean. It's not like my dad and he ever got along any way… I just felt like I needed to tell him…" she dropped her eyes and then gave him her back, stiffly rummaging for socks.

Jake didn't know how to respond to that.

He stood up and made his way to her, forcing his hands into his pockets, "well if it's going to make you feel better then I think that you should call him…"

"No, it won't make me feel better," she disagreed with a soft sight, "I just need to… I need to worry about the important things right now."

"Yeah," Jake agreed and thought back to the coins in her drawer. He bit his tongue, unwillingly to bring that up for fear that she might become infuriated, "is there anything I can do for you?"

Sherry gave Jake a small smile and stepped nearer, pulling him closer in the process until her cheek rested on his chest, "I just want you to be here with me… please."

"Always Cherie," he lowered his lips to her cheek and pressed firmly. A sad smile graced her face.

"I need to make funeral arrangements," her voice was shaking. It was clear that the thought made her uneasy, but Jake wouldn't offer to do it for her, knowing that she'd decline.

"I need to go home for a bit Sherry, just to grab some clothes. Do you want me to stay here with you for a couple of days?"

"Only if you want to," Sherry murmured

"I do."

**…**

Sherry waved Jake goodbye as Chris drove him home. Sheva smiled at Sherry with a rather sad face and handed her a plate of grilled cheese. Jake promised to be back that night, but that first he had to take care of a few things, so Sherry knew that it would be a long day.

As she was sitting in front of her television she couldn't bring herself to focus in on the program. Her eyes were glued to her fathers door. She wanted to go into the room and see how things were left.

Suddenly, Sherry's cellphone began to ring. Without bothering to glance at who it was that was calling she picked up.

"Hello?"

"Sherry!"

Her body stiffened for one moment, "Jill?"

"Oh God Sherry," she broke out into soft cries over the phone, "I'm so sorry. I wish I could have helped him but he was sleeping and when I went to check on him he was-

"It's not your fault," Sherry assured her with a soft breath, "I know it's not your fault-

"I need to see you," Jill whispered, "I want to help you with anything you might need. I've been working up the courage to call you, I'm so sorry."

Sherry shook her head, unable to feel rage or even sadness, there was too much exhaustion in her for all that, "don't feel guilty Jill please. It's really not your fault."

"When can I see you?"

"Whenever you'd like," Sherry shrugged, shutting her eyes and putting the plate beside her, "I'll be here all day," the sun was already going down, "but I might go to bed early."

"How does tomorrow sound?"

"Perfect."

"Okay, bye Sherry… I'm so sorry."

Sherry whispered a goodbye and set the phone down, keeping her eyes trained on the door to her father's room. She could hear the shower running in the shower. Sheva was in there.

Slowly Sherry came to a stand and began walking towards her father's bedroom. Her heart was drumming furiously. Hiding away from the world felt like her best option. She wanted to stuff all her feelings into a box and seal it away. But she couldn't do that.

Pushing open the door Sherry released a soft breath and peered around the room for a long moment.

The bed was made, everything was in its spot as if he was never there.

It still smelled like him though. It was making it very hard for her to breathe. The longer she stood there the dizzier she felt. Against all of her wishes she released a hard breath and then tears began to stream down her face.

"Fucking hell," she whimpered and moved to the mirror. She stood there for a long time and wiped at the tears furiously. She hated crying. It embarrassed her and hurt her to know that even though she had done her best to prepare her she was cracking to pieces.

She needed to get out of here.

_Why did this happen to me? _She wondered as another hard breath escaped her, _why is it that I am always abandoned... oh God, dad… are you looking down on me? _

Her eyes widened as she looked in the mirror. She looked absolutely disheveled. And the empty bed behind her was only a reminder of exactly why. She was alone, again.

It enraged her.

Sherry cocked her elbow backwards and slammed her fist violently into the mirror. It shattered into pieces and she quickly jumped back, her hand was cut open, but she couldn't bring herself to care. The blood was dripping down onto the floor and she could only stare in amazement at what she had just done.

With buckling knees her body slid to the floor. Had Sheva heard? She didn't know. A hearty moan escaped her as the pain numbed itself out and she drew her knees up to her chest, breathing deeply through her nose. _When did everything get so messed up…? God it's only going to get worse._

Sherry didn't know how long she sat there, simply breathing but a few moments of silence passed when suddenly the door opening sounded.

"What the fuck! Sherry?" Chris ran forward and Jake was right behind him. Sherry shut her eyes, embarrassed as Jake jumped forward and took her bleeding hand in his grasp, using the material of his shirt to stop the red flow.

"What did you do?" Jake glared at her, his voice rising with his outrage as her blood soaked his shirt.

"I-I don't know-

"The mirror," Chris explained, noticing the pieces of it that were still shattered in the frame, "she hit the mirror."

"What the fuck Sherry?" Jake pulled her up to her feet, cradling her hand and pulling her out of the door, "how long have you been in there?" he asked with trepidation, noticing how distant her stare was.

"It doesn't hurt," she murmured softly when he dragged her all the way to the kitchen and put her hand under the warm tap water, "why can't I feel it Jake?"

"I don't know," he muttered and gently washed her hand, running his fingers along the cuts on her knuckles and noticing how she didn't flinch, "Chris get me a towel."

"He gone Jake," her voice quivered and his crispy blue eyes turned up to her, softening as Chris passed him the towel and he pressed it to her knuckles, "oh god—

"Sherry stop moving," Jake commanded in a serious tone as she pulled her hand away from him.

"Let go Jake—

"Sherry-

"Let go of me!"

"You're bleeding all over the floor!" he exclaimed as she pulled her hand out of his. Her eyes darted around the kitchen as Sheva came out of the bathroom, shocked at the shouting she had just heard, "Sherry give me your hand!"

"Get away from me," she whimpered and shoved past him angrily, her hand trembled as she moved past Sheva and Chris who were pleading with her, but she couldn't hear them, she was already making her way towards the door. She needed to get out of here and breathe.

"Get away from that fucking door!" Jakes voice was right behind her as she reached for the doorknob. But it was already too late.

"Get off!" She screeched angrily as Jake picked her up off of her feet and then began carrying her with both his arms around her waist to the bedroom, "Jake get off of me!"

"Stop Sherry!" Sheva pleaded with her Jake threw her down onto the mattress, ignoring the laugh threatening to break out of him as Sherry's small body tried to regain balance as she bounced up and down on the mattress.

"You're not leaving," Jake glared at her, "you're going to do something stupid."

"Get out Jake!" She exclaimed and winced at the pain in her fist as she began making her way off the bed. Jake whirled around and glared at Sheva and Chris with a stare that forced them out of the room. Then he shut the door quickly and turned round to face Sherry's wrath.

"Sherry I know that you're hurting, I fucking get it," he said, "but I'm not letting you hurt yourself-

"I just want to go out for a walk—

"I don't care! You're not leaving like this, all pissed off! You'll do something stupid." He ran a hand along his head again, glaring at her as she trembled with what appeared to be anger in front of him. "I'm not letting you out of my sight—

"You don't get to make the decision for me!" She declared rather loudly, stepping closer to him until their feet almost touched, "No one will ever make those decisions for me again Jake Muller."

He frowned then, "who made those decisions for you Sherry?"

"Everyone," she declared hotly, "dad, Luis—

"What are you talking about?"

In one motion her body stiffened, as if she had suddenly realized what she had said. His stare was too inquisitive, unsettling in its intensity. "Nothing."

"Don't give me that –

"It's nothing Jake, let it go-

"Don't give me that shit!" He exploded and suddenly stomped over to her drawer.

"Jake, what are you doing-

"What is this?!" He forced out her tokens. Making her heart tighten violently in her chest, "does Luis have something to do with this?"

Her eyes watered as she stood there, breathing hard, "you have no right to ask me that—

"Are these yours?" He asked again, "tell me!" His voice softened as she wrapped her arms tightly around her waist, "tell me."

"Sherry?" Sheva opened the door, worried from the sounds she had heard "Jake what's going on?"

"Nothing," he stated quickly, dropping the tokens into the drawer as if they had burned him. He made a huge mistake doing this, and he knew it. The look in Sherry's eyes let him know that they were in fact hers.

"Sherry are you okay?" Sheva spoke up softly, noticing how Sherry trembled and bit her lip, biting back the rage.

"No, I'm not okay," she shook her head, glaring at Jake, "I'm going out—

"Sherry-

"Don't follow me Jake," she glared, "I'm serious."

Ignoring her he followed her as she walked to the front door and began putting her shoes on, "where are you going?" he crossed his arms, staring down at her as Chris nervously stood behind him.

"Out."

"Don't do that," Jake glared as she stood up, "don't do that vague shit-

"I'm going out Jake. I don't know where but I'm going out for a while."

He knew he wouldn't be able to stop her, "fine. If you're not back here in an hour I'm going to go looking for you," his eyes darkened at her as she made an attempt to roll her eyes, "don't make me do that."

"Bye Jake," she turned around with a kittenish fury and made her way out of the apartment.

She had lied, and she felt only a vague guilt for it.

She knew exactly where she was headed, Steve Burnside's house. And she wouldn't come back in an hour, she'd probably stay out until the morning.

_I'll just have to brace myself for Jake's wrath, _she thought as she took off into the night, unaware of the mayhem her actions would cause.

* * *

**I've been planning the next chapter since the creation of the first chapter. :) I hope you'll all enjoy the chaos I plan to create. **

**Review...**


	33. Lost

**Chapter XXXIII**

Sherry walked with a hard step away from her apartment. Every move away from her friends felt like torture. But being around them was suffocating within itself. Jake was too curious, and in his curiosity he had pulled out things in her past that she didn't want to remember.

How had he known to even go into that drawer? _Did he sneak around my things while I was showering or sleeping? _Sherry's thoughts made her shiver and wrap her arms tightly around her frame. Those had been bad times in her life, and she could hardly stand to think about Luis or what had happened to her because of him.

Sherry quickly realized with apprehension that she wasn't really headed towards Steve's house. She didn't know where he even lived. Still she walked on and when she approached the house she bit her lip nervously and began to step up the porch.

_Jake is going to hate me… _Sherry thought as she brought her knuckles down against the door. The sun had already gone down, and she could vaguely hear sounds from the inside of the house, loud music.

Anxiously Sherry listened for an approach, but when no sound came she began to imagine that the person couldn't hear her over the music. Silently she turned and began walking down the porch.

It was as she was making it onto the sidewalk that she heard her name being called in a familiar voice. Quickly she turned her head and saw Piers making his way down the steps. His full mouth was stretched into a smile as he made his way to her. The closer he came the more Sherry stiffened. Jake hated him…

"Sherry, how are you? What brings you here today?" His eyes brightened when she smile sheepishly, it hurt her face. Her eyes revealed nothing.

"I'm just looking to relax for a bit…" she looked behind him to the house, "is there a party or something?"

"No, just a small group of friends, do you want to come inside?" Piers eyes shined, "I could give you something to drink."

Nervously Sherry bit her lip, "I don't know… I mean... what do you have?"

His eyes narrowed playfully, "are you looking to get drunk?"

_Am I? _Sherry nervously shook her head no, "just… a little tipsy maybe."

"Then follow me sweetheart," Piers led her towards the house, Sherry did her best to calm her nerves. This would help her forget.

This was good.

**…**

"Jake you need to relax." Sheva murmured gently as Jake paced violently up and down Sherry's bedroom. His eyes were narrowed and focused on no specific object, "she said that she'll be back."

"She's fucking upset Sheva, she just lost her father, it's not like she's thinking like she usually would," Jake countered in a mumble, walking over to her mirror and staring at her small earrings that were messily thrown into a small metallic case. "I've got to find her."

"If you go after her she's going to be angrier Jake," Sheva shook her head at him, "and you really shouldn't have dug into her drawer like that. What the fuck were you thinking to bring up something so private like that?"

He shook his head. _Sherry probably hates me. Fuck I have to talk to her… _"I don't know Sheva. I really don't."

"You weren't thinking, like always," Chris stated a little harshly, "I mean really? When have you ever 'thought' when you're angry. Never! Ugh, never" his dark eyes narrowed, "have I been so fucking angry with you. You owe her an apology."

"I know that," Jake glared, "she's got twenty minutes to get back here. If she doesn't I'm going out to get her."

**…**

"You know how cute you look when you do that?" Piers smirked drunkenly at Sherry as she blinked dazedly in his direction. The couch was certainly large enough so that they could be apart, and yet, he was right beside her, their thighs touching,

"No," she answered, blinking. She wasn't drunk, but she was very close, "how cute?"

"Very cute," he smirked, and leaned in, kissing her cheek gently and making her blush. "So, whatever happened to Jake?"

"Jake?" Sherry thought for a long moment, how many hours had passed? The party was still in full swing, people danced and vibed off of one another, Piers stuck by her side the entire night. "Jake's home."

"Oh," Piers frowned, "are you two living together or something?"

"No," she giggled at the idea, "he's at my apartment with my friends."

"Why did you come here then?" Piers raised a brow and slid an arm around her shoulders, pulling her into his side. Sherry frowned but said nothing, taking another sip of her whiskey and coke mix. It tasted horribly, but she was at least able to keep her mind off of what needed to be forgotten for the night.

"I wanted to forget," she admitted, "and escape."

"Mhmm, and my house is the place to do that?" Piers noticed her head lolling back and smirked as she shut her eyes. Cautiously he removed the glass from her hands, afraid that she might perhaps drop it in her daze.

"Anywhere is the place to do that," she admitted rather bluntly.

He frowned and then smiled, trying to convince himself of what was not there, "but you chose my house of all places…"

"Yes…" she admitted, her head lolled forward as her phone suddenly began to vibrate.

Sherry knew it would be Jake before she even picked up the phone, so with that in mind she quietly stood and stepped outside to the porch, stumbling and staring ahead of her dizzily. She couldn't even hear Piers who was calling after her as she shoved past a pair of girls and pressed the phone to her ear, horribly eager to hear Jake's voice.

"Hello?"

"Sherry? What the fuck!" Jake exploded instantly, "I've been calling you for the last two hours."

Had it been that long? Sherry bit her lip, "sorry… I was busy—

"Where are you?" he interrupted, he sounded just as irate as she had expected. It made her weak at the legs, "I've been walking around and I can't find you."

"I'm out Jake, don't worry about me, okay? I'm with people – I'm fine."

"Sherry—

"It's nothing Jake," she sighed heavily, doing her best to keep her temper in check. Suddenly an arm came around her waist, Sherry gave a small shriek and jumped away, only to find Piers laughing at her reaction.

"Who is that?" Jake growled over the phone.

"It's-it's nothing Jake," she stuttered, looking at Piers shakily, he was approaching her with a slight sway in his step, clearly he was drunk.

"Sherry are you drunk? You're slurring your words—

"No," she squeaked too quickly. She heard what sounded like a sharp curse from Jake's end and Piers closed in on her, pulling her tightly to his chest. Sherry sluggishly pushed at his chest as he laughed, Jake heard.

"Sherry where are you?" His tone took a dangerous edge.

"Nowhere—

"Don't fucking play with me Sherry!" He roared over the phone, making her eyes well up with tears. It reminded her of her father… and Luis, "tell me where you are I'm coming to get you."

"Give me that," Piers laughed gently and made a grab at her phone but she walked out of reach, it was easy since his response time was so impaired, still he made his way towards her.

"Jake I'll be home soon okay?"

"No," his tone held a very serious edge, "tell me now."

"Jake," she whispered it as Piers chuckled and kissed her forehead, she shoved him away with one hand, he just laughed, "please I don't want you to fight…"

"I won't," he promised, calming his voice, "just tell me where you are baby."

Her eyebrows knitted in the center of her forehead and she bit her lip.

"Come on," Piers laughed and took the phone from her. Sherry gaped as he shut it, hanging up on Jake, "you and I are going to have one more drink," and with that he towed her, back into the house, her drunken slurs being swallowed by the music.

**…**

"Jake! Slow down!"

"No! I know she's with Pears I heard him," Jake raged as he stomped down the streets. Sheva and Chris were right on his heels, "then she hangs up on me. Me? Is she crazy! I swear to God if I see that he's touched her I'm going to fucking drop kick his ass. That motherfucker!" Jake yelled angrily as they turned down a street. Two more blocks and they'd be there.

Just the thought that Sherry was near him made him blind with anger. That boy knew exactly how to rile him up. Sherry was his, and he was hers, Pears was not going to get in the way.

"Don't go in there like a maniac Jake," Sheva warned, "if you say that she's drunk it's not going to help for you to act just as irrational."

"I'm going to kill that kid," Jake growled.

**…**

"Stop, Piers, stop," Sherry slurred and stumbled as he pulled her down the hallway, laughing at her protests, "seriously!"

"Come on, we won't do anything just – come on." He slurred, looking back at her and tugging her by the waist, "nothing's gonna' happen."

"Then why are we going to your room?" Her eyes widened as the hall tilted onto its side, Piers laughed and pressed her to his side until finally he reached the door and pushed it open. Sherry opened her eyes, not realizing that they had closed.

Piers pulled her into a room with beige colored walls and a bed covered with a green bedspread. The lights were dimmed in the bedroom and suddenly he pulled her to the bed and she fell against it, sluggishly trying to raise herself.

"Look, look baby," Piers smiled drunkenly and reached into his pocket, pulling out a small bottle. She groaned with effort and tried to sit up, but her head felt so heavy. The bed shifted as Piers began to climb on, his eyes were on her. Piers pushed her hair out of her face and put the pill bottle in her eyesight. She squinted, trying to read the bottle, "let's fly," he laughed sweetly, kissing her cheek.

"No.." she shook her head and again made a move to stand, the room spun and she flopped back down. _This isn't good. No, no... but Jesus it's been so long..._

"Come on, just one, you'll feel so good Sherry," Piers gently kissed her hand, "think about it, you'll be completely numb. It's only going to last a few hours. Or here," he reached into his pocket again and pulled out marijuana, "this is lighter baby."

_No, no, no, not this again! _"I want to go home," she whispered and suddenly felt pressure on her shoulder.

"It's okay, we won't do that then," Piers assured her and adjusted her on the bed so that she lay on it fully, he settled in beside her and watched her as she struggled to sit up. Her eyes were infuriated as she kept trying and trying. "Relax Sherry-

"No, I can't be here," she was on the verge of tears. The drugs would take her again, she would start with pot, and move on to the pills, and then something else, and all of her work would have been for nothing. If she passed out she didn't want to think of what could possibly happen to her in such a state.

"Lay down," Piers said softly. Sherry began to tremble with more fear than ever before.

**…**

Jake pounded on the door of the house furiously. He could hear music pounding from inside, and he also knew that at any time the police would show up. He didn't even want to think of what would happen if Sherry was in there – drunk.

"They can't hear over the music," Chris stated, annoyed as Jake pounded on the doorknob again. "Move."

Jake stepped aside and Chris grabbed the doorknob. His hand suddenly jerked and the door popped open. Without waiting Jake stomped past Chris and into the house.

Beer bottles lay everywhere and a couple of people whooped at Jake's entrance. Sheva rolled her eyes and spoke to Jake and Chris, "I'm going to check the kitchen and stuff."

"I'll ask around, Jake why don't you take the second floor?" Chris suggested.

He cringed, "that's where all the bad shit happens." Chris laughed shakily and Sheva made her way away from them, Chris began to ask a few people and Jake was already skipping steps and travelling to the second floor.

All around him he could smell the alcohol that lingered in the air. He knew that it would start to cling to his body sooner or later.

Quickly Jake made his way down the hall, opening a door and finding that it was just a bathroom. He shut that one and then kept making his way down, very aware of the sinking feeling in his stomach. He knew she would be somewhere around here, that's how things like this usually turned out.

Jake stood in front of the second to last door and took a deep breath. What if she was in here? And what if she was in here with someone… the thought made him tremble. Without thinking further Jake pushed the door open and froze.

"What the fuck!" Billy yelled as he got up and off the bed and Rebecca rolled onto the floor, landing with a sharp 'oomph'.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Jake yelled, stepping into the room and glaring at his friend as he struggled to put his shirt back on. The room itself was dark and now the only light streaming in was from the hallway that Jake had stepped out of.

"I came to party asshole, what else?"

"Have you seen Sherry?" Jake said, very aware of the pained sounds that Rebecca was releasing from the other side of the bed.

"No, I haven't – wait where are you going?"

"I'm looking for Sherry! By the way use a condom – Jesus!" Jake yelled as he shut the door behind him.

It was precisely at that moment that Sherry drunkenly stumbled out from the last door, banging into the wall in front of the bedroom door in the process.

**…**

A long moment of silence transpired as Sherry clutched her now red forehead and Jake watched her, unsure of whether he should laugh or not.

"Sherry?" Jake made his way over to her, deciding that he would just try to hold in his laughter. Her eyes made their way up to him and for the longest time all she could do was stare at him, "Sherry, are you hurt?" Jake almost laughed as she stood there, clutching her forehead and staring at him with shock.

"No, I mean yes…" she stuttered, "I-I'm okay—

"Come on," he chuckled, relieved to know that she was fine and wrapping an arm around her waist, "let's get out of here."

"Jake?" Piers' voice slurred from the bedroom, instantly Jake's body seized as he turned and saw him making his way out and into the hallway. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh God, I'm going to be sick," Sherry squeezed her eyes shut and leaned onto Jake for support, wrapping her arms around her midsection and biting her lip. She could feel the urge to bend over and vomit coming up. Her entire system revolted against it as she tried to breathe in Jake's scent and focus on something else.

Jake's eyes ran over Piers' form. He was still clothed, and Sherry was still clothed, but it was he who had grabbed the phone.

"Give me the phone," Jake snarled.

Piers blinked, trying to process the words, "the phone?"

"Her cellphone you goddamn idiot!" Jake yelled, releasing Sherry and rising on the balls of his feet with anger, "give me her cell phone now!" His palms were beginning to itch, every part of him wanted to bash this kids head in.

"Her phone..? Oh yeah," Piers stumbled back into the room, and even that made Jake want to hit him. He hated his guts. Everything about Piers was awful to him, even the way he walked and breathed, the way he looked at things and the way he frowned. _Everything about him is fucking terrible. _

Piers walked over to the bed and grabbed Sherry's phone. This drew Jake's attention and then his eyes narrowed in on pill bottles on the bed. Against all rational he began to draw his own conclusions.

Without warning Jake's fist found itself embedded into Piers green shirt. He pulled the drunken boy up close and glared down at him with a look that made Piers suddenly able to focus completely on what was going on.

"Did you give her anything?" Jake's eyes began to narrow and redden with anger, "did you?!"

"No, no, I didn't man chill out!" Piers stuttered and shook as Jake shoved him back. He collapsed against the floor and quickly scrambled up as Jake stomped closer to him. Jake was going to beat him bloody.

He reached for Piers and angrily lifted him up against the wall, slamming him into it once and then speaking, "did you drug her? Did you fucking touch her?"

"What? No, no she didn't want to—

"I'll fucking kill you if you did!"

"Jake stop!" Chris yelled and ran into the room, grabbing his friend just as he had cocked his foot back to kick Piers in the shin. Jake yelled and struggled against Chris as Sheva helped Sherry get onto her feet and began to tow her down the hall.

"He gave her something!" Jake defended himself, straining over Chris' shoulder to get to Piers, "I know he did!"

"No he didn't you asshole," Chris huffed, "stop assuming."

"I better never see your stupid face again!" Jake yelled just as Chris hauled him out of the room.

**…**

"Oh God Sherry," Sheva whispered as her friend collapsed on the grass outside and doubled over, dry heaving, "sweetheart we have to get you home."

"Dad's not there, "she cried, fisting her hands into the grass and shaking terribly, "my dad's dead Sheva… I loved him so much… it's not fair, it's not fair. He was a good man. This isn't right!"

"Shh," Sheva gently settled beside Sherry on her knees and rubbed her back gently, "it isn't fair, you're right, but life doesn't owe us anything for just being alive. You just need to relax Sherry, the alcohol isn't helping you any."

Suddenly Sherry stiffened and then in one movement she began to sob, horribly loud.

"Sherry? Oh God, Sherry!" Sheva panicked and looked up as Jake and Chris began making their way down the porch steps, Jake's eyes were on the girl and for one moment it seemed to Sheva that he was about to break out into a fit of rage, but realizing just how bad Sherry was he ran to her instead and just pulled her up into his arms.

"What happened?" Jake murmured gently. Sherry's cries only intensified and Chris spoke up.

"Let's get her home guys, tonight I have to go back to the apartment, Sheva you should come with me, Sherry needs privacy."

_I'm not leaving, that's for damn sure, _Jake thought as the small blonde clutched him tightly to her. His protective arms soothed her and for a long time all she could think about was the fact that he made her feel like nothing this horrible would ever happen again.

_But it will happen again, _Sherry thought, realizing suddenly that her feet were not on the ground. Jake had lifted her up into his arms, _people die… Jake will die, Chris and Sheva too…_

They all walked in silence, and when Sherry's sobs simmered down into simple hiccups and hard breaths Jake sped up his walk, wanting to get her into her house immediately.

Sheva opened the door for them when they got into the apartment. Jake tried his best to not hurt Sherry as his grip on her tightened, he wanted nothing more then to hold her closer and to make her stop crying.

When they got into his house he gently lay her down and shut the door, locking Chris and Sheva out in the process.

Sherry was still awake, he knew it by the way she breathed, too deep to be normal and too quick to be calm. Gently he settled down into the bed and rolled her until she faced him with a palm on her hip. He massaged the skin there, hoping that she didn't mind.

"I'm staying here tonight," Jake murmured gently…

Sherry nodded and shuffled closer to him until all she could breathe was his sharp scent.

"And we're talking about this tomorrow," he squeezed her hip gently, warning her. "You can't do this shit to me."

"Jake..-

"No," he sat up and glared down at her. Her teary blue eyes opened, "you can't fucking do that to me again. You might think that you're not important, but to me you are! Don't you get it?"

Her eyes watered and she bit her lip, shaking her head, "Jake you shouldn't say things like that. We've known each other for some time now. You just don't want me to hurt myself that's all-

He sighed heavily and settled in beside her again, "that's not all of it Sherry. You're..." he didn't know how to put it, "you're very important to me."

She shook her head but he stilled it, locking his hands around her cheek softly, "you're mine Sherry..."

"Jake..."

"Are you going to say you don't feel the same way?" He asked, trying to keep the edge out of his voice but his eyes held all of it. Sherry lowered her gaze, "don't you feel the same way?"

"Of course I do. I just don't want you getting hurt. I'm fickle, Jake..."

"I know," he sighed, "I know." Then he bit his lip with thought… he would call his father… yes. He would call his father and have him explain what his link to Sherry's father was. In front of Sherry too. "Sherry... tomorrow I want you to tell me about Luis..."

Her body stiffened.

"Please."

She didn't respond for a long time, and he could hear the wheels turning in her head, then finally she responded, "okay."

"Goodnight Sherry," he kissed her red forehead gently, smirking when she winced slightly. "Clumsy girl."

"Hush," she pouted, sleepily kissing his jaw in return... then she paused, "you didn't hurt Pears did you?"

Jake burst into a riot of laughter, "shit... oh God. His name is Pears now Sherry?"

She reddened and then pretended to be asleep, embarrassed at her drunken mistake. Jake kept laughing until he too finally settled into sleep, clutching her to him, and knowing that tomorrow he would get the truth about this Luis character.

* * *

**:o FINALLY. WE WILL FIND OUT ABOUT LUIS. AND WESKER WILL BE MAKING A SPECIAL APPEARANCE? Well we'll see about that!**

**So, tell me what you all think, what do you think is the deal with Luis exactly? O_O But more importantly, how do you think Sherry will react to Jake and Wesker being related? The end of this story is almost coming, and I think you will all be very... VERY - excited about it. haha!**


	34. Half of Her

**Chapter XXXIV**

"No, no…"

Sherry's annoyed murmurs escaped into the room from her nightmares like a soft wind, barely noticeable. She twisted once in annoyance as she struggled to escape the nightmare. Her father was saying goodbye to her again, and she was leaving him alone, unable to stop herself.

"I want to stay," she whispered with a croaky tone, balling her hands into fists against the mattress and struggling to go to his side. But she was not able to. The hazy dream propelled her towards the door, ignoring her unconscious wishes to remain at her father's side as he tossed her one fleeting smile. Unknowingly, Sherry began to cry, her tears spilling onto the pillow beneath her head as the door closed, shutting her out forever.

"Sherry?" Jake groaned softly and rolled over, staring at her. The room was being filled with light as the sun rose.

"Please don't-don't do this," Sherry pleaded now, "Luis…" his name escaped her in a breathy whisper, so soft that it shouldn't have caused Jake alarm, but it was the way she began to twist that made him sit up, "No… oh God.. oh God—

"Sherry?" Jake shook her lightly by the shoulder at first, worried about her even though he knew that she was okay. But even in her dreams he wanted to save her.

"Stop, stop," she pleaded, but he knew that she was not awake. In one fluid motion she suddenly gave one wild gasp and made a move to sit up as her eyes popped open but Jake was already there, pinning her down by the wrists and straddling her waist as she twisted, stuck somewhere in between reality and dreams, confusion and terror.

"Sherry you're awake!" He assured her as her eyes darted wildly around the room. She was shaking terribly hard, and it made Jake worry that she would have a panic attack. Quickly he grasped her face in his hand and forced her wild eyes to look at him, her hands flew to his shoulders, trying to push him away. She was terrifying him, "Sherry God damn it stop!" Her hands fisted in his shirt, "you're awake, okay?" Jake's frown became more pronounced as her gaze widened, "you're awake… relax, it was a dream and you're awake now," he continued to emphasize as she nodded, swallowing hard and quivering for all she was worth.

"I'm awake," she assured herself quietly, swallowing hard again and releasing his shirt, "I-I know."

"Shh," Jake bent his lips and touched them to her own, pleased when she returned the kiss lightly, it was so natural to do with her that he never thought about it until after she responded, "You're okay?"

"Yeah" she nodded, wriggling slightly as Jake rolled off of her and fell to the side. Instantly he pulled her into his chest and smiled a bit, again he hadn't thought about it, but she never protested, "What was I saying?" With knitted brows she clarified, "I don't remember what I dreamed about."

"You kept saying 'no' and then you mentioned Luis." Jake frowned. "What was going on?"

She thought for a moment, but continued to come up blank, "I don't remember…"

"Mhm…"

Jake and Sherry lay there for a long time without saying anything to one another. Jake could feel that Sherry was beginning to doze off again and so he let her. When she had gotten slightly slack he looked down and smirked, she was out like a light.

Using his time wisely Jake stood from the bed, carefully untangling himself from Sherry's grip to call his father. The man, as always, picked up on the second ring.

"Yes?"

"Dad," Jake's tone was curt, "are you busy today?"

"I am always busy," his father responded with what Jake knew to be annoyance. _Oh well, _he thought, _he's a pain in the ass anyway so I don't care._

"I need you to come to my friend's house, she's not doing so well and I want you to make sure that she's okay and that she hasn't been taking anything." It was mostly a lie, but a partial truth.

There was silence on the other line. It made the air tense.

"What do you suspect your friend has been doing?" Wesker's voice returned with more quiet then Jake had heard in a long time. It sounded… not concerned, but rather interested and invested.

"Drugs," Jake murmured, turning to see Sherry's door, noticing that it was closed, "she went to a party last night and I don't know that she's doing well."

"I will be there in a matter of hours. Goodbye."

Jake hung up and then crossed his arms with annoyance. _He knows how to get here and I didn't even give him the fucking address. Something is definitely up._

**…**

Sherry stirred awake an hour later and began to change her clothing. Today was the day. She would tell Jake everything he wanted to know about Luis. _Jesus, _she thought, combing her hair, _Jake is going to think that I'm a lunatic. _But that is what she had been, Sherry admitted only to herself, a lunatic.

When Sherry exited her bedroom she smiled at the sight of Jake making her breakfast. He seemed to be struggling and was cursing at the pancake box.

"This bullshit, fucking pancakes. What the hell are pancakes anyway? Flat warm bread with honey? Oh my god what the hell is this!"

"Jake, you can't just throw it in and wait for one side to be ready," Sherry laughed as the top side of the pancake bubbled, "just flip it over."

His eyes narrowed and tentatively he followed her directions, amazed to see the perfect golden brown tone of the other half of the pancake.

"It's that easy," Sherry assured him with a small smile. Then she took an appreciative look at Jake's body, "when do you want to talk?"

"Right now," he responded with a huff at the pancakes. His impatience was making Sherry choke back laughter.

"Okay, well where do you want me to start?" Her heart beat picked up.

"Okay, first tell me who Luis is."

Sherry took a seat and sighed heavily, "Luis is an ex-boyfriend… met him in high school."

Jake nodded with his back to Sherry, "and how long did the two of you date?"

"Three years… it was very on and off."

"And what happened? Why did the two of you break up?"

Sherry paused at that, unable to really get the words out for a few seconds. _Just say it… just say it. _"I… I don't know how to put it. I mean there were a lot of reasons…"

"What was the final straw?"

"Well.. one night he came into my house, when I lived back in my old town," she remembered her horror, "he was so angry. He said I had abandoned him after he graduated, that I was a slut, a bitch and cold for not trying to have more contact with him. He got so angry that he started throwing things around my room and hit me in the face. Open handed," she winced slightly as if she could still feel it's sting, "he was really very angry that night and well, he left. And I never heard from him again. Dad came in that day, asked me what happened and I told him."

Jake's eyes bulged and his fists tightened. He wanted to find that guy and beat him half to death. "What else happened between the two of you?"

"I was afraid that you'd ask me that."

Jake turned to face her and frowned, noticing how slumped she sat in the chair at the round table, "tell me."

She nodded, "it's not that simple. I mean… Luis got me addicted to some drugs when I was in sophomore year."

"What?" Jake's eyes hardened and his jaw clenched.

"I shouldn't be telling you this," Sherry murmured, shaking her head, "you're going to get mad-

"You're damn right I'm going to get mad." Jake stated hotly, "he got you addicted to drugs?"

"It was my own fault, I should have known better…"

"How old were you versus he?"

Sherry thought, "I was… I was a freshman and he was a junior…"

"Jesus!" Jake slammed the spatula down and shut off the stove, aware of the burning scent from the pancakes, "Sherry he was way older then you, you were way too young-

"I knew that drugs were bad Jake."

"You're right, you did know, but at the end of the day you were younger then he was – much younger. Your state of mind at that age is much different than his. He knew exactly what he was fucking doing and you should have known better but it's not exactly your fault that you didn't. It's called being young and stupid and naïve."

Sherry did not respond, biting down on her lip.

"And what drugs were they exactly?" Jake was drumming his fingers against the counter. He kept imagining what the guy must have looked like, he wanted nothing more than to beat him half to death.

"Soft stuff at first… weed… salvia… things like that.."

"And they progressed?"

"Yeah… I mean. The thing is that after he graduated I was kind of lost… it's not that he abandoned me but his priorities were elsewhere and then he had introduced me to a group of people that I shouldn't have been around, and yet he said I was the one who left him, so I just started hanging out with his friends more. That's why he labeled me 'slut'."

"Who?"

"They were these older guys… the men who supplied him with his drugs," Sherry eyes dropped, ashamed, "they were way too old."

"How old Sherry?" Jake's voice was coming out in a quiet acidic tone.

"They were probably in their 30's or something," she mumbled.

"And they are relevant why?"

"Because I was… I was so stupid," Sherry shook her head, dropping her forehead to her hands and then looking up at Jake as his eyes narrowed, "I started hanging out with them and drinking and then one day they gave me ecstasy… and then it was LSD… and then it was heroin."

Jake's eyes bulged and his breathing picked up.

Just the thought of Sherry in that state of mind terrified him. He could picture her, dazed beyond belief, her eyes half open and half closed as she rocked in place until she fell back against a bed. Her eye lids flickering as she tripped and her body completely slack, helpless to whatever evil and devious things anyone wanted to do to her.

"Oh my fucking God," Jake murmured and dropped his head to his hands on the counter. Sherry tried to keep her tears inside. "Heroin!"

"Yeah," she trembled, "I-I didn't want to do it at first but they were all-

"How many is 'they all'?" Jake's eyes lifted and he looked around to her.

Sherry thought back to that fateful day, "maybe like… four of them."

"And where was your father!" Jake exploded.

One instant Sherry was across the room and the next she was violently pushing Jake against a wall, so hard that he had to catch himself on the side of the long counter for balance.

"Don't you ever insinuate that my father didn't care for me!" Sherry yelled up at him, her arm lodged against his chest, keeping him pressed to the wall, "I was the one that kept sneaking out against his wishes. It wasn't because he didn't care for me! If he didn't care for me he wouldn't have found me at all!"

Jake swallowed, trying to figure out how she had even gotten to him so quickly. Her eyes were fire and rage. Thinking safely he gave one nod and Sherry pulled away from him, glaring at him a little bit. "Sorry," he murmured.

"Yeah," she nodded, swallowing and walking back to her chair, "don't do that again Jake."

"I won't. I'm sorry," he nodded, and then cleared his throat, "so then what happened."

"Well... my dad started noticing that I was changing. And he never liked Luis, he always said Luis was a bad influence and that I shouldn't have dated the likes of him. But he knew it wasn't Luis that was causing this change. I started to stay out later and then I started to sneak out," Sherry tried to not tear up, remembering her father's face when she had returned home after the carnival. It was like De ja vu. "Well one night it got really bad and I went to one of their houses, his name is Krauser. When I was there he invited a few of the guys over and he gave me a bit of heroin…" Sherry paused, remembering how horrible that night had been. "I remember that I took a hit.. And then things just got really fuzzy. I remember we were all really high. I started to hallucinate, imagining that Luis was there… It was a nasty trip. I was hyperventilating and I was falling everywhere. I couldn't take it so I got to my phone and I called my dad. Told him I didn't feel well."

Sherry could remember that part perfectly, her father's voice, so worried and soft.

"Daddy?" Her tone had been wary, slurred and muffled by the drugs in her system, "Dad?"

"Sherry?" Her father groaned, probably checking the clock, wondering why she would call him from her bedroom down the hall. Except of course that Sherry hadn't been in her room sleeping. "Sherry what—

"I don't feel good dad…" She had groaned and fallen to the bathroom floor then, the phone clattering away. She could hear him shouting over the phone and pleading her to get it. Sherry struggled to get to her feet and when she couldn't she just crawled over to the phone and grabbed it in her hand. Then she pressed it to her ear.

"Sherry! Where are you!"

"I'm… I'm with Jack," she had murmured weakly, and then lay on her back, "I feel like I'm falling—

"Where are you Sherry?" Her father sounded frantic. Her eyes began to widen, aware of the fact that she was about to either die, or pass out, "answer me!"

She gave her father the directions in a slurred manner and began to make her way out of the bathroom.

"I stumbled into the living room," she explained to Jake, "and… well I fell onto the couch, and Krauser came, he was the oldest one. Well he just sat next to me and started kissing my—Jake?"

His face was beet red and it looked like he was having trouble just breathing normally.

"Jake are you okay?"

"Continue." He urged, swallowing.

"Well. He started kissing me and I was to high too really shrug him off but he didn't get very far, he was too far gone and he was moving very slowly. And my dad was faster," Sherry smirked despite the serious nature of the conversation, "he stormed in and almost beat the man half to death. Then he grabbed me, called the cops and got us out of there. I remember him yelling at someone on the phone for something and then I was in my room and he was angry… so mad," yes she could remember it perfectly. That always stood out to her. His rage as she lay there, high off her mind and unable to really see anything clearly.

'The Luis boy has been her ruin!' He had yelled around the room as Sherry moaned. Someone was looming over her and sticking something into her arm, she was certain that she was hallucinating all of it, 'it was all that boy!'

'Calm yourself William' a sterner voice replied, 'your anger is unbecoming.'

"I never found out who that guy was," Sherry shrugged, noticing that Jake was looking at his hands rather angrily, "the one who helped to make sure I was okay. He was gone by the time I woke up, but my father was very much as my side, and as soon as I got up he had addresses to different rehabs.

"I chose one and got clean, he made me promise to never contact Luis again, and then we moved here."

"Oh my god," Jake murmured and dropped his head into his hands. He had never thought that she could have actually gone through so many things. "Jesus Sherry."

She shifted with discomfort in her seat, "do you not like me now?"

"Of course I don't dislike you," Jake retorted sharply, raising his serious gaze to her and frowning, "I just can't believe that you… you didn't take anything last night did you?"

"No Jake, I just drank."

"Okay," he breathed, relieved. Then paused as he looked at his phone. It would be maybe a couple of hours, or minutes, or seconds until his father showed up. With that in mind Jake straightened up and turned back to the pancake, "it's burned."

"Why don't we just have sandwiches instead," Sherry smiled. He nodded.

Somewhere in the town Albert Wesker was making his way towards Sherry's apartment.

* * *

**:o We are truly approaching the end of this story. I can't wait to show you what I have planned. I am thinking three more chapters. **

**Tell me what you thought :)**


	35. Loose Ends

**Chapter XXXV**

Albert Wesker made his way up the stairs of Sherry's apartment complex with a sure step. William had left him the key to the entrance before he passed, and because of this there was no need for him to ring doorbells. It seemed trivial to him anyway. He could not picture a man like himself ringing a doorbell.

He wondered if the girl would be angry to see him there. She would probably be more confused than anything, after all, she did not know what relation he had to the boy in her apartment at the moment. A smirk passed over his lips as he rounded the corner and stopped in front of her door. This would be an interesting evening.

Inside the apartment Sherry sat on the couch absent mindedly staring at the television. Every time silence reigned she was only reminded of her father's death. It hung over her like the worst type of cloud. Her own insignificance was weighing heavy on her mind. She had never experienced death. It had always been someone else's relative who had died, and while she knew that the day would come when he would be gone – she never imagined that it would hurt so badly.

Jake nervously watched Sherry from the other side of the couch. She looked dazed and very confused. It seemed to him that everything about her had changed. Her eyes were no longer wide and sparkly, but half lidded and dim, even her skin tone seemed less radiant. She was definitely depressed. There was no doubt of that in his mind.

A sudden knock on the door made Sherry jump, she frowned and then swallowed.

"It's probably Jill," she murmured, standing, but Jake was already pulling her back down to the couch.

"It's not Jill… it's my dad."

Her eyes widened and narrowed. _His dad? _"Why would your dad be here right now Jake?"

His eyes hardened for a moment, then it seemed that he thought better of something and loosened his expression, "it's just… important, okay?"

"What?"

Jake didn't bother to respond, he stood from the couch and made a quick stride towards the door. Sherry stood, crossing her arms. Infuriated at his short explanation and confused beyond belief. Why would he want his father there? And why had he not told her, it was her apartment after all.

When Jake pulled the door open Sherry felt her stomach clench.

"What are you doing here?"

He stood there like an iron and marble God. He wore all black from head to toe, his professional pants wore dark and so was his button down shirt. The sleeves were perfectly length to his wrists and there were no wrinkles in it at all. His blonde hair was slicked back, away from his face. It made it look like his features were sterner then perhaps he meant to look.

The man cocked his head in her direction from his son. And for a moment Sherry felt as if though the room was spinning, she gripped the couch arm and placed a hand on her forehead. What was going on here? _That's how dad knew about Jake... his friend is Jake's father… he wanted me to stay with this man… oh God that would mean I'd be living with Jake… Oh god this man is Jake's father!_

"Sherry?" Jake made quick strides in her direction and carefully sat her down to the couch, kneeling in front of her and then looking up at her as she blinked down at her lap.

"This is too much," she breathed, aware of the fact that the man had not walked in… Wesker, _that_ was his name. _Wesker_ had not entered. _But Jake's last name is Muller… maybe it's just his mom's last name. _

"Are you feeling faint, Miss Birkin?" Albert asked, stepping forward now and slowly coming to her side. She looked up at him and shook her head no. His monotone expression remained, "are you certain that you are not lying?"

"Yes," she whispered, looking at Jake, "Jake this is your father?"

"You know one another?"

"Yes," she nodded, looking up at Wesker, "you came to see my dad… dad wanted me to stay with you."

"What!" Jake's eyes bulged, then he stood up and glared at his father, "you know Sherry then? And you never thought to tell me anything-

"I was not aware that I answered to my son," Albert responded, moving in front of Sherry and dropping until he was at eyelevel with her. His sunglasses reflected her. Her eyes were tired looking, her hair was in disarray and even worse she looked like she might actually faint. "Have you made a decision?"

"About?"

"About staying with my son and I." Albert clarified, "your father was certain that it would be the best decision for you. He and I were colleagues for many years and he entrusted me with your care should he pass away. I simply cannot overlook the fact that you appear as if though you are sick."

"I'm not sick," she stated, looking up at Jake who was glaring furiously at his father. "Jake…"

"So did you know?" Jake hissed, "you knew her father was dying and you never thought to tell me!"

"It is not your business," Albert murmured, analyzing his dead friend's daughter carefully. Her color was off, it made him wonder if she had indeed ingested something. "Jake, step out of the room-

"What?! No!" He protested, "I'm not leaving her with you-

"Jake, its okay," Sherry whispered, looking to him with a quiet confidence, "really-

"No, I'm staying," Jake growled, looking at his father and then taking seat on the arm of the chair. A moment of silence passed and then Albert spoke again, this time to Sherry.

"What have you been doing since your father has passed?"

"I… I didn't do anything," Sherry's nerves were on edge, Albert Wesker could read her easily, more easily then Jake who thought it was simply Sherry being awkward.

"Are you lying to me Sherry?" Albert wondered out loud, making Jake narrow his eyes, "are you absolutely certain that you did not do anything-

"Why does it matter to you?" Sherry exclaimed, standing up and walking past him and Jake, "I don't even know you!"

"I beg to differ," Albert stated, standing and turning, "you may not remember it but years ago when you were using drugs I was the one who cared for you while your father was trying to keep himself from killing them all. I was the one that found you initially."

"That was you!" She gasped.

"Yes."

I-I don't remember that night very well," Sherry whispered.

"I remember it all, especially that vile man, Krauser. Your father broke his nose after finding him on you."

"What!" Jake exploded and jumped to his feet. Suddenly he was marching towards Sherry but his father put on hand on his shoulder, stopping him completely, "you told me nothing happened!"

"I-I—

"Sherry was mostly unconscious, he did not get very far. The man was too high to find the last buttons of her shirt." Wesker stated. Sherry gave a shiver at the thought and shook her head, "have you been using drugs again?"

"No!" She exclaimed, shocked, "I – I…" her eyes moved to Jake, "did you tell your father that I was?"

Jake looked rather sheepish suddenly, "I-

"You thought I was using drugs?! Did you think I had lied to you or something?!"

Albert smirked at Sherry's anger. _It is rather kittenish... _

"I just needed to get him over here and I said that, I know you didn't use anything." Jake said. Her heart clenched, "trust me"

"I just don't know what your father is doing here."

Albert turned to his son, "I agree. What am I here for?"

"What's your connection to her father," Jake glared, pointing out the picture of her father on the table, "he's in a picture from back home."

"William Birkin and I worked together," Albert explained again and fixed his sunglasses, "and it is because of that that Sherry is coming to live with us."

"Excuse me?" Sherry glared, "no I'm not."

Jake's eyes sliced to her, "Sherry… maybe it's best that you-

"I want to stay here. I'm not leaving. This is my home—

"Sherry it's best that you are around people, I mean… it's not good for you to just be here all alone, that can't be good," he murmured,

"I know that you think that it's going to be like… a wreck if I am left alone. But I promise you that I'm not going to do anything I shouldn't." Her voice sounded more confident then she really felt, but steeling her will she repeated herself, "dad's funeral is in a week… I'll make sure to call you Jake, so that you know that everything is okay."

"Sherry I'm staying here," he asserted with a look that made her feel strangely small, "you want me to don't you?"

"You can if you want to," her eyes skated over to his father who stood just as imposing as the first time she had laid eyes on him, or at least the first time she _remembered_ laying eyes on him. "If that's okay with you of course."

"Certainly," he muttered, "however I do not think it is appropriate. Your father would not have tolerated such a thing. You will stay with us, your father wanted it that way and it is best that you are in a new environment for some time-

"You don't get to tell me what to do," Sherry whispered, "you're not family-

"On the contrary," Wesker smirked, "I am your God-father Sherry Birkin. I was there the day your mother brought you into this world, and I am certainly not going to allow you to wallow in your father's memory. Now pack a bag girl, you are coming with us," he shrugged, "your father gave me something he wanted you to have anyway, and it is in my home. If you want it, you will pack a bag for a week and come now."

"What did he leave me?" Sherry whispered, biting her lip, "what was it?"

"A letter. I am to give to you, but he demanded that it be under my own roof. The contents of the letter are of vital importance."

Her raged began to boil, "you can't just withhold my things from me! That letter was for me not for you!"

Albert sighed, the girl was stubborn, "pack a bag miss Birkin, I do not have all day to argue with you." Jake looked to her pleadingly as she stared at his father in outrage.

"Just come," Jake smirked, "you know you want to."

"No Jake, I really don't!" She argued.

Yet, thirty minutes later Sherry found herself in the back of Albert Wesker's car, clenching her jaw angrily at his stubborn attitude and Jake Muller's half satisfied smirk.

* * *

**I might merge the 'last two' chapters into one... but I'm not exactly sure yet... I'm thinking really hard on how exactly I want to finish the last two or ONE chapter... i know how it's going to end, and I can't wait to show you guys! :) Short, but it is coming to an end, so I'm trying to tie ends together. **

**Review:) **

**On another note, I might do another Jake/Sherry store or a Dante/Kat (Devil May Cry) Story... I'm still thinking, what do you all think? :) **


	36. Notes From the Dead

**Chapter XXXVI**

"This is your house?" Sherry breathed as they stepped into the large mansion. Jake took her bag from her suddenly limp grasp and nodded, looking around casually and shrugging. His father was already moving up the stairs, ignoring the two of them, "this is beautiful."

"It's alright," Jake murmured and then wrapped and arm around her waist and began moving her up the stairs. "you like it?"

"Well, yeah," Sherry laughed softly, "it's beautiful." The laughter sounded strained, but it made Jake laugh, she was making an attempt to smile. That was enough for him, "it's much more grand then my tiny apartment."

"I like your tiny apartment much better then all of this, your apartment is home," he murmured quietly, "this place is way too big for my dad and I."

Sherry didn't respond to that, both transfixed by everything that she saw around her and also amazed at Jake's response. If he had ever told his father about that opinion she suspected that the man would not re spond kindly. But then of course, if the man was always working – as she imagined, then certainly the opinion that this house was not a home would not surprise him.

Jake led her to the second floor where there was a wonderfully intricate tiled floor. She relished in the sound of her shoes coming down on the wood, the soft tapping of it made her smile slightly. The walls were paneled with glossy wood. It made the space feel more narrow and cramped then it really was.

"Where's your room?" Sherry murmured, aware of the fact that Jake had yet to release her. This hold was protective and tight, as if something might jump out and yank her away.

"My room is right down the hall," he smirked, noticing Sherry's surprised stare, "did you really think that I wouldn't give you the closest room to me?"

"I… I thought you might," she admitted softly, and then looked up at him, "will your dad mind?"

"He's hardly ever here, he probably won't even know."

Sherry nodded, accepting this. Jake finally stopped in front of a wooden door and pushed it open.

"Are you kidding?" Sherry breathed. He grinned as she stared.

The room was large, much too large for one person. There was a big bed pushed against the wall on the left side of the room. And against the wall opposite of the door there was a large window. To the right of the room there was another door, which Jake explained was a bathroom.

The colors were all dark, there was indigo colored curtains against the window. The floor was wooden, and it had blue patterns running through it. The bed itself had a wooden headboard and black satin looking bed sheets. Sherry couldn't help but take in the lavishness of it all, and then become uncomfortable.

"This is really nice." She noted as Jake walked to the bed and put her bag on it, "this room I bigger then my living room."

"I'd rather be in your living room then in this house," he responded, casually throwing himself back on the bed. Sherry stepped forward towards Jake and did her best to keep her nerves down. This house was too royal. Everything felt overdone and perhaps to an almost uncomfortable degree. And yet, it retained its beauty nonetheless.

"Come here," Jake purred softly as Sherry stopped walking. His hands found hers and he tugged her forward until she stood between his legs. He smirked up at her shy expression, "you're nervous."

"Of course I am," she whispered, looking over all the things in the room, "this is so not me… I'm totally out of my element here. Its beautiful Jake, don't get me wrong, but I didn't want to come here. I didn't want to be a burden-

"Shut up," he purred, standing up and gripping her firmly by the hips, her breathing hitched as Jake licked his lips, "I want you here… don't you remember?"

"Of course I do Jake," a hard sigh moved through her, "I just have a lot of things on my mind… dad's funeral is in a week," her voice came out choked, "and I just don't know how I'm going to deal with it."

"I'll be there with you," he tugged her until she sat on his lap. Sherry melted in his embrace and resisted the tears threatening to build in her eyes. "I want to be there, but only if you'll let me."

"Of course I'll let you be there." She nodded, "I might just need a bit of quiet after it all…"

"Of course."

**...**

"Bullshit!" Jake yelled.

Sherry resisted a smile as Jake furiously hammered his thumbs into the controller for the game console. His stare was feral.

"Fucking lag!" He shut the system off and angrily set the controller down, "Chris better not call me with that fucking laugh of his."

"It's not Chris' fault that you suck," she shrugged with a smile, noticing how his stare darkened. "You just don't have any plan, you rush into attack, Chis bides his time. That's why he was able to kick your butt."

Jake released a soft growl and suddenly he was on her. Sherry released a short squeal that he cut off with his palm. He was settled between her thighs, her lips were only inches away from his.

"I bet I could kick your ass in this game," he murmured, kissing her jaw gently, noticing how she moaned softly under his palm. She released what sounded like a short protest but he just ground his hips into her, pressing his groin against her, relishing in the soft sounds she released.

Finally he took his hand away from her mouth and she smiled, "I will end you in this game Jake."

"We'll see about that," his lips pecked hers.

Jake and Sherry left the room after that, and decided to find his father. Sherry was more than anxious to find him since he had the letter that her father had written for her, or at least he said so.

When they found Albert Wesker he was in his office. Jake knocked on it tentatively and upon hearing a monotone, 'enter' he pushed the door open and pulled shy Sherry inside. The office was just as dark as she expected, the walls were crimson in color and the rug was also very dark. Albert Wesker sat behind a mahogany desk with a laptop before him, the glasses were still in place.

"Yes?"

"Are you busy?" Jake asked, stepping forward more and casually resting a hand on the table.

"I am always busy, Jake."

"Give us the letter," he demanded quietly, "we've waited long enough. It's not fair of you to keep holding it back from her when you know how important-

"Jake, stop," Sherry whispered, afraid of what the calm looking man might say in reaction to Jake's rather imprudent tone, "Mr. Wesker I only wish to read the note and get this over with. My father's funeral preparations are not finished and I would very much like to.. get all these thing in order… and if I could just-

"Here," Albert Wesker's tone was bleak, "read it in the privacy of your room. I am certain you will want it."

He reached for a drawer, pushing a key into the hole and then opened it. He pulled out a small envelope and slid it across the desk. Sherry silently took it in her hands and murmured a soft thank you before escaping his presence.

He terrified her.

She could sense Jake behind her. He moved like a man possessed, wrapping an arm around her waist and tugging her in the direction of her room. The note shook and blurred in her hand as she trembled. What could the note hold? A final goodbye?

When they reached the entrance to her room Jake stopped outside of it. Sherry needed to do this on her own, they both knew it.

"I'll be right out here if you need me, okay?"

She nodded, unable to speak. Jake kissed her cheek and then shut the door, eager to know what was in the letter.

**…**

Sherry sat down for a long while, trying to come to terms with what she suspected was in the note. Should it be a goodbye, she would do her best to not break down- after all there was no reason at all as to why she should do that. She knew that the day was going to come, but just the thought of it made her want to sob. It felt like he was still alive in a sense.

Carefully opening the letter she took note of the fact that it was on a small sheet. Could this really be all that her father had left to say to her? Was there nothing else? _How could so few words be all that is left? _

"Here goes nothing," she breathed, opening the note. Immediately her eyes watered at the sight of his hand writing.

_Dear Sherry, _it started, _if you are reading this then it means that you are probably with Albert Wesker. Thank you for staying with him. These coming days will be hard for you, and I rather rest knowing that you have taken my thoughts into consideration and gone with him. Albert is relentless however, so I suspect that he was more imposing than is proper and that also swayed you. _

_I cannot begin to describe to you all the pain it gives me to write this note. I love you so much, sweetheart. But you must be strong. You aren't alone, there are people to support you if you look in the right places. Just don't put your trust in the wrong person. I don't want you to be hurt, ever again. And I'm sorry that I wasn't there for you when you needed it, and I'm sorry that I can't be there now. _

_Sherry, I am writing this to you because I need you to understand that my death had been a process. It is not a single moment, it is something that takes a matter of weeks, months, years, and I've been dying for a long time now. I need you to understand that my death was never accidental, it was completely on purpose. Forgive me. I know that taking my own life-_

She released a hard grasp, standing up and breathing hard.

_No. no, no, no, no! This can't be true, there's no way… there's no way._

But it was true, it was horrifically true, she continued reading, ignoring the sounds of Jake from outside, asking her if she was okay.

"Sherry, are you alright?"

_I know that taking my own life is not what I should have done. But there are reasons for what I did. My work ruined me Sherry, it is the reason that I lie here now, it's the reason why my body feels like it's exhausted. And it's the reason why my hand is being forced. I can't do this anymore, but I need you to understand that I love you. And that my final moment was not painful. It was with thoughts of you, and about the great woman I know you'll grow up to be. I know that Albert will take care of you._

_With all of my love,_

_William. _

_Live well. _

She couldn't breathe. The room was spinning. Her father had killed himself, he could have still been alive and with her but instead he killed himself. The sounds of Jake and Albert furiously pounding on the door escaped her. This was too much, and so without energy she collapsed onto the bed, and then onto her knees as Albert and Jake burst into the room. Her hands were shaking horribly. Her entire body was quaking and Albert rushed over, laying her flat on her back as she shuddered and trembled. Jake's feet were nailed to the ground, unable to move as she hyperventilated.

"What is it?" Weskwe asked her, holding Sherry's face tightly between his hands as she gripped his wrists tightly, unable to think.

"D-dad he…"

"Sherry?" Jake ran over then, kneeling beside her and taking her hand, placing it over his chest, "breathe okay? Like this—

"he-he-

"God damn it Sherry, listen to me!" He exclaimed passionately, "breathe. Follow with me."

"Do as he says," Albert ordered, releasing her face and snatching the note off of the ground. His eyes ran over the page quickly, and two seconds later he crunched the note in his hands.

"Jake, oh god-he-he-

"Shh, Sherry please just breathe," he whispered and pulled her tightly into his chest, aware of the look on his father's face. The man looked like he was locked in thought from the slight furrow on his brow bone. She wasn't crying anymore, just shaking terribly hard against him with an arm over his shoulder.

This would be the last time she cried, she vowed. Her father had killed himself, leaving her.

"What's in the note?" Jake asked his father harshly, noticing that Sherry's shakes had died down slightly, and now she was simply sitting in his lap, silent.

"Dad killed himself," she answered before Wesker. It sounded strained, "he killed _himself_."

The betrayal left her numb and unfeeling. She was unsure that she would ever be able to cry a tear, nothing could compare to the hurt or the betrayal that she felt at that moment. Nothing.

* * *

**One more chapter to go... and I know that a lot of you said that the story has slowed down and while I understand the dislike of that I have to explain that my stories will never been pure excitement all the way through. That takes away from the exciting moments that I would try to create. I hope that you all enjoy the last chapter, I think that you all will very much. :o I don't think it's going to be too long, but it will be filled with what I hope is unexpected stuff :) **

**and I can't wait to see your responses :) **


	37. Finale

Final

The days passed slowly. Sherry found herself more depressed as the days went by, and Jake felt more helpless. He would enter her room in the mornings and find her sleeping. Every time he woke her briefly to tell her he was going to go to school, and she would nod and hum before falling back to sleep. Then when he returned he would find her in the same exact place. His father agreed that Sherry was depressed but knew it was normal.

Sherry on the other hand seemed to be unaware of her behavior. If she ate it seemed to be a struggle to everyone but her. She rolled her food around in her plate and then it grew too cold. So then she would heat it up again and chew through it slowly.

The funeral was coming up, and try as she might she could find no peace with what her father had done.

_He has the right to do that, _she reasoned, _he was in pain… I understand why he would want to end his life. And yet… _and yet she could not bring herself to forgive him for it.

Chris and Sheva visited her often. Jill called her every day and told her she wanted to see her, but Sherry was in no mood to see anyone, and so she politely told Jill that she was simply not able to do it on that day, or the day after that.

Truthfully the only person Sherry wanted to ever see was Jake. He would return in the afternoons with warmth and a soft smile on his face, making her feel better despite all that had happened. It reminded her that she was not alone. It helped her calm herself and rationalize her thoughts when he was around her.

"Do you… do you love him?" Sheva asked Sherry one evening while Jake and Chris played video games in the living room of Jake's home. Sherry and Sheva had gone off into the kitchen in search of something to eat.

"I don't know," Sherry admitted thoughtfully as she spread butter onto the bread, "I just… I don't know. I think I do," she blushed slightly, "he's very sweet. And I've known him long enough to where love wouldn't be such a ridiculous thing. He's just very sweet."

"Who would have thought," Sheva smirked, "Jake and Sherry sitting in a tree-"

"Very mature," Sherry laughed. It felt relieving. But as soon as it came it was gone, the reminder that it had been a long time since she laughed made her sober up. Her father's funeral would be in a matter of days. Sheva, Jake, Chris, and Albert Wesker would be in attendance.

"So, what have you and Chris been up to?"

Sheva shrugged and lowered her voice, "Chris is still going to the army as you know. And basically he and I… I don't know. He wants to stay together while he is away… but I just don't think that I can do it Sherry. I really don't."

"You'll still love him and think of him as yours even if he leaves," she reminded Sheva, putting the buttered bread in the oven.

"Yes, but I just don't want to wait around for someone that won't really ever return. I should be able to live my life and fall in love."

"You're in love with Chris. But I understand what you mean. There is no reason as to why you should wait around while he's leaving."

Sheva nodded, "I just know that he's not going to handle it well."

"When do you plan on telling him that…?"

"I don't know," she sighed, dropping her head onto her hand, "I mean… I have to be sure about the decision first. Then I'll come to a choice. But until then I'm just going to see what happens. I just hope that I don't regret whatever choice I make."

Sherry hummed in agreement.

When they moved back to the living room Sherry smiled at the sight of Chris' frustrated face as Jake grinned and killed his character.

"You fucking cheated," Chris hissed.

"Yeah? You don't have any proof," Jake laughed, standing as Sherry neared him.

"Proof? You want proof?!" Chris stood and jammed his finger at the screen "that right there is fucking proof. You have a gun that is only available through cheat codes!"

"And how would you know that?" Jake challenged as Sheva rolled her eyes, "you just sold yourself out. I knew you were using fucking cheat codes all those other times! I told you I'd figure you out you liar!"

"Whatever, kid." Chris frowned shyly and then pulled Sheva into his side, "Sheva knows I don't cheat."

"Liar," she muttered quietly and silenced him before he could protest with a kiss on the mouth.

Sherry silently went to Jake's side and took his hand in her own. Instantly it seemed to her that a pressure she hadn't noticed released itself from her.

"How are you feeling?" He asked quietly as Sheva and Chris took a seat on the couch and spoke about something.

"Feeling fine, thanks for asking."

"Anytime," his lips found her temple and then he sat, pulling her onto his lap lazily, "I just want you to be honest with me, that's all."

"I am," she admitted, "but that's why later we have to talk about something."

At this Jake stiffened. Instantly he thought back to the last few days and how they had gone. He hadn't done anything to annoy her. Or so he thought… "Are you mad at me or something—

"No, no," she laughed and kissed his cheek gently, "it's not anything like that. We're fine. I promise, we're absolutely fine."

"So then what is it?"

"It's just," she sighed carefully, "we'll talk about it later okay?"

He nodded silently and pulled her in a bit closer, aware of how she shivered against him and then melted into his embrace.

Later on that night when Chris and Sheva had left Sherry stood in the living room waiting for Jake. They were both alone in the house, it was the perfect time to do this.

Sherry knew that Jake wanted her to stay here with him, she understood that he worried about her all alone in her apartment. But she also knew that this couldn't go on much longer. There had to be an end to it at some point, and that end would be the day of the funeral.

When Jake returned he had a wary frown on his face. He knew that whatever was coming was serious by the way Sherry clasped her hands in front of her self. She was just standing there, staring at him, and there seemed to be a sad smile on her lips.

When he stopped in front of her he crossed his arms in front of his chest. Regarding her tensely.

"So what do you want to talk about?"

"Well," she squirmed, "I… I wanted to tell you that I'm grateful for you letting me stay here. You know that. And you also knew that I _wasn't_ planning to live here. I've been here for like a week now Jake… I think it's time for me to go home."

There was a moment of tense silence. She could see the understanding working itself out in his face. It was as if he was having a hard time really grasping the concepts and was working them out one by one. Finally, he came to an understanding of some sort and took minor step forward.

"You can't leave Sherry… you can't be all alone-

"I've been alone for some time Jake," she smiled softly, "I'm not going to be _alone_ technically... I mean I still have you, I'll just be alone in my apartment-

"I can't allow-

"It's not up to you to allow anything," she reminded him, doing her best to not lose her patience. "This is my choice completely. If you'll still have me here I'll stay until my dad's funeral-

"You can't be alone especially on that day Sherry! It's going to be your dad's funeral and you think I am going to leave you alone in an empty apartment after all the shit that you've found out? My dad will lock you in here –

"Would he really?" she murmured, "Because in that case I'm leaving now."

"No…" Jake whispered and pressed his hand to his forehead, "he really won't." _He really would. _"I just think it's a good idea that you stay here for a while."

Sherry watched him closely. She could see that his worry was making its way up to the surface as he shifted from foot to foot, and raked his hand along his head. "See, that's exactly why I have to go home."

"What?"

"Look," she pointed to his tapping foot and laughed softly, "you get antsy at the idea of me returning to _my_ home. You're getting too used to me being here Jake. It's not good. It's really not."

"Sherry…" he sighed and pulled her closely to him, "just think about staying for that day… please?"

"No Jake.. I'm going home on that day. I need to be home. Alone."

"I'll do you one better…" he argued, "I'll take you home, and I'll leave you alone, but I want to be in the apartment with you… to make sure you eat."

"Okay," Sherry relented… "okay."

Silence reigned for a moment as Jake hugged her tightly, her small body made him feel overwhelmed with warmth, "thank you."

**…**

The day of the funeral was a tense one. Jake did not sleep at all the night before. Sherry was crying in her room, he could hear it from his. He had knocked on the door over and over, trying to get her to open it but she simply asked him to please leave her alone for the night, which he did without complaint. He knew that she wanted privacy in things like this, and he respected that.

The next morning he dressed in a black t-shirt, dark pants, and dark combat boots. His father was waiting for him in the living room and he dressed as he always did. They did not speak to one another as they waited for Sherry.

In her room she was staring at herself in the mirror. She wore a long sleeve black t-shirt, and black jeans with her black flats. She looked paler than usual, and despite herself she couldn't bring herself to make any attempt to look strong or normal today. Her eyes were swollen and red from a night of crying, and she had absolutely no energy in her system.

"Time to go," she murmured and grabbed her cellphone, then began the exhausting process of putting one foot in front of the other.

When she made it down stairs Jake took her in his arms immediately, she did not respond except to kiss his cheek and toss a meek smile at his father who watched impassively and then led them out the door.

The inside of the car made Sherry feel worse. Trapped in the silence he could not help but recall all of the great moments she had with her father. The amazing laughs and the soft hugs he would give her. And now she was all alone. The word kept making itself present in all of her thoughts.

Alone, she was going to be completely alone.

Jake did his best to remain silent as Sherry sniffled in the backseat. He wanted to stop the car and go back there with her, but he knew that it would not help.

When they made it to the graveyard Chris and Sheva were already there. Albert Wesker pulled open the car door for Sherry who just sat there absently, taking a few deep breaths. And when she made no attempt to get out Albert Wesker bent down and spoke to her, aware of the wary look his son was shooting at him.

"Sherry."

"Mhm…" her absent stare made Albert Wesker wonder if the girl had gone into a catatonic state.

"We are here."

Sherry blinked out and looked around her… that was fast.

Jake watched Sherry step out of the car and pulled out a cigarette. This was stressing him out. Silently she walked over to her friends and smiled at them..

"Thanks for coming guys…"

"No problem, sweetheart," Sheva sniffled and kissed Sherry on the forehead, "we'll always be here for you."

"Yeah… no matter what," Chris assured her with a firm squeeze on the shoulder. Jake took her hand and Albert Wesker silently passed by them all with a curt nod in Sheva and Chris' direction.

They followed him to where an undertaker was waiting with a pastor.

Jake's nerves started firing off when they approached the casket. Sherry's body seemed to seize up and he had a hard time moving her as she eyeballed the casket. It was long, and wooden. The way the sun shone down on it made it gleam slightly, as if calling more attention to itself.

Chairs sat out and so they all took a seat. The pastor read out passage after passage. And Albert Wesker remained completely still as he watched the man drone on monotonously. Jake watched Sherry who sat beside him with a mask of complete emptiness, Sheva sniffled and shed tears, and Chris stroked her and Sherry's hand soothingly.

"Would anyone like to say a few words?" the pastor asked gently. Instantly they all looked to Sherry.

She hadn't heard. She was just thinking about the fact that her father's once animated body was now in that casket. It was a harrowing thought, that one can be alive, and then gone.

"Sherry?" Jake murmured gently, tapping her hand, "do you want to say something?"

"Mhm? No… no I don't."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah…" she sighed and resisted the urge to sob, "I don't want to say anything."

Albert Wesker nodded at the undertakers and they all stood.

Sherry watched, trembling as they began to bury her father. It became harder and harder to control herself as she watched the casket go under. For a long moment all she could do was stand there, shaking, battling with the need to break out into sobs. But alas, she controlled herself and like usual remained controlled.

…

The hours after that passed in a daze. Jake carried Sherry back to the car as she seemed unable to walk in a straight line, and noticed that small tears were building in her eyes, she did not let them fall. Sheva and Chris waved goodbye and Sheva promised to return to the apartment that night. Albert drove them to the house and Sherry began speaking only then.

"No, no, I wanna' go home-

"No, Sherry, you need to stay with us for a while," Jake protested softly as she weakly shook her head and tied her arms around his neck. He was already carrying her through the door, following behind his father.

"I want to be with my dad," she croaked, "I want to sleep on his bed…"

"Sherry I'd rather you just stayed here, please?"

She nodded mutely and continued to hold Jake close.

Outside the rain had started to fall, much to Jake's annoyance, of course it would rain on an already depressing day. _Great, _he thought sarcastically as he took Sherry to her room and lay her down on the bed.

"Do you want anything?" His voice was soft in her ear.

"No…"

"Please Sherry.. I'll get you anything."

"I don't want anything Jake," she whimpered, "please just… I just want to sleep. I want to sleep."

He nodded, understanding, "okay baby, sleep," he kissed her temple and then escaped the room.

**…**

It was the middle of the night and Jake was sleeping in his bedroom. Albert Wesker was in his office, typing away at some files.

Everything was terribly quiet in the large house, that' what made the next events so loud even though they weren't.

"I'm coming dad, I'm coming." Sherry whispered frantically as she tossed on her shoes.

In his room Jake opened his eyes at the sound and sat up sharply. _Is that Sherry?_

"We can be together dad, yes, we will be together."

"What the fuck?" Jake threw the covers off of himself, kicking them away and jumping off the bed as her door sounded.

When he stepped out into the hallway Sherry was already speeding off down the hall.

"Sherry?!" He called and took off after her as she sped down the stairs. Sherry had heard her father calling to her, she knew that they had to be together or she would die painfully alone on this earth. Jake would eventually get bored of her, and Albert Wesker would want better for his son.

"Sherry stop!" Jake yelled as she landed on the bottom step and moved towards the door.

Albert Wesker stood from where he sat at the sound of yelling.

Jake took off after her full speed. But the difference was that he had just woken up, his eyes were hazy and even worse his legs were not cooperating with him. All he could see was the back of Sherry's head as she reached the door and pulled it open.

"Stop!" Jake yelled as Sherry ran out into the rain.

Albert Wesker took off down the stairs at a blinding speed as Jake Muller angrily tossed on his shoes and grabbed his motorcycle keys.

"What is the meaning of all this?" Albert growled angrily at the disruption.

"Sherry just ran into the fucking night like a wolf was on her ass, that's what," Jake muttered, stomping to get his shoe on his foot, "I think she's going to her apartment."

"I doubt that," Albert glared and grabbed his car keys, "follow me."

**…**

Sherry ran and ran blindly through the streets. There were some cars on the road, and they honked or stopped to try to ask her where she was going, but she didn't care. Sherry continued to run.

Jake wasn't on her mind, or even Albert Wesker. The only man on her mind was her father who she needed now more than ever.

She tore through the air and continued to run and run until she reached the cemetery. Without regard for the lock on the gate Sherry began to rapidly climb the gate. She could hear a terrible roaring in her ears and she knew that this would be her only chance to be with her father forever. Die with him, yes that was the only way.

Sherry got onto the other side of the gate and against her better judgment she made an attempt to jump off and fell. The injuries did not phase her. She had fallen on a hard rock with a jagged edge. It had cut into her flesh but she did not notice. Instead she used it as an opportunity. Taking the rock in her hands blindly, whimpering slightly, she ran again in search of his gravestone.

The rain was falling hard now, it plastered her hair against her face and made the blood in her veins rush faster. There would be nothing else after tonight, just her and her father… in hell probably for suicide, but she didn't care. She wanted to be with someone who would never leave her.

When she found it see released a hard gasp and collapsed in front of it, tracing her fingers over his name there.

"Oh daddy," she whispered, "why did you have to do this?" The question had been plaguing her, "I know it hurt, but did you think that maybe you would have been able to just enjoy you last days with me? Did you have to be so harsh with yourself?" The wind slapped her cold skin harshly, making her shiver… "I CAN'T be alone dad I can't.. .because I've been alone for so long and now that you're gone there is really no one here for me. I have no family. I have nothing." A sob ripped through her then, "and if you had just died naturally it would have been different. I would have known it was coming and that there was nothing I could have done to make it better. But you killed _yourself_, my company was not enough to make you stay. Your daughter was never enough!" She was screaming now, enraged, "Did you think about me? At all! Did you think that that note would explain everything? You never fucking cared about me when you took your life! And I forgive you daddy. I do. I know you suffered, but a note doesn't make it okay! It doesn't make it okay…."

Sherry released a soft cry and backed away from the gravestone. There she pressed the jagged edge of the stone against her wrist.

"I know that if there is an afterlife I'll end up in hell dad, I know that. It's a sin… but I just don't care anymore." With that said Sherry stared down at the soil for a long moment, "you have to forgive me for…"

Suddenly, quite suddenly… quite _unexpectedly_ she felt a small tremble rock through her.

It wasn't her own body, instead it was the ground before her. She squinted in the dark as she watched something peek out from the ground. A worm making its way up.

But no, it wasn't a worm. It was a pinky… and then it was a set of _fingers_… then a hand and then a wrist. To her horror the dirt began to lift and a scalp was peeking forth from the ground.

"Oh God…"

A terrible moan ripped through the ground, shaking her to her very core as she sat there, in shock at what she was witnessing. Shoulders worked their way up and her father clutched the ground desperately as he tried to move up and out of the ground.

"Dad?" She croaked with shock… It moaned in return and she screamed wildly. It was unlike a scream she had ever heard.

Her father raised his head at the sound of her and opened his grimy eyelids to reveal two hollow holes. His gaunt face was still mostly intact, but it had taken an almost purplish color, and fluids were leaking out of him and mingling with the rain. With a grunt he pushed harder and made a terribly strong attempt to get to her as she came to a stand, but then, so did he.

It was then that a grotesque form popped out. Something that was too large to really be a shoulder. It was terrible… just appalling.

As he rose up from the ground she realized it was an eye… a blinking eye.

It rolled and stared at her with its large iris and pupil, the veins in the eye throbbed with life. Life it should not have.

He was already on his knees, and Sherry couldn't stop watching as he weakly swayed and made his way onto his feet. He seemed feeble despite his large size. This thing did not really resemble her father, and yet, it was her father. It was disturbing altogether.

He blinked at her, and then the eye blinked too, and his arm… it wasn't an arm at all. It was a claw. A monstrously large claw with an eye for a bicep.

He watched her without watching her. He turned his nose up towards the rain and released a soft growl… his right foot came out towards her first, and then his left. Sherry watched with terror as his hands came up in her direction, and clenched over and over, making an attempt to grab at her.

"What is this? Wake up, WAKE UP!" She shrieked, unable to move her feet. All too quickly he was nearer to her and it seemed that something in her broke.

"Sherry…." He whispered it out gently, and for a moment she saw him as she remembered him when he was young. His blonde hair always covering his forehead and the back of his ears… the straight nose and the perfectly healthy blue eyes.

"Daddy…"

"Sherry-" He gave a deadly moan and grabbed her by the sleeve of her shirt. Sherry screamed at the cold hand and pulled away, ripping the shirt in the process. She almost fell back but caught herself and with terror in her system held the jagged rock up. Wanting to run, and yet unable to move away from the fascinating sight.

Who was this creature? What was this thing? Why was she dreaming this? And better yet, why was she not running? What was going on? The thoughts made her feel faint.

"Get away!" She pleaded, "stop it! Stop!" This wasn't her father, no, no, no. _It's a fucking monster! IT'S A MONSTER. _

And just like that Sherry took off running.

She sped through the large cemetery. Screaming for help at the top of her lungs as the thing came after her, running and matching her pace. The ground shook with its weight. This was not her father.

_I'm going to die! _She realized with terror, _oh god I'm going to die, I'm going to die! _

She sobbed out as she felt hands grab her shirt and viciously yank her back.

The air rushed past her, roaring in her ears violently.

Sherry collided with a tombstone and released a screech so loud that it made the beast freeze. Her back felt shattered. White hot pain shot through her. It radiated and for a long moment it watched her writhe and scream against the cracked stone.

"Oh-oh-oh god!" She cried and lay there helplessly as the thing started coming closer. She saw her father's face, she could see his eyes as they were when he was healthy, squinting at her trying to understand why she was screaming so painfully. "What are you? Please don't hurt me!"

"Sherry…" he said her name again and the eye rolled in its socket. She couldn't rip her eyes away from it. As the beast closed in on her Sherry shut her eyes and began to pray. It knelt down in front of her and reached forward it its human hand, gripping her by the shoulder that was bleeding. Sherry ignored the touch and kept praying for mercy.

"Dear lord, please save me, save me from this, if I should die make it fast, please."

Her eyes opened as she heard that terrible sound again, the sound of the eye rolling viciously in its socket, it sounded slimy. And the beast released a dead moan from its throat. Something in her snapped.

This was not her father.

Without a second thought Sherry grabbed the jagged rock and lifted it. It released a loud growl as her hand came down, but it was already too late.

The jagged rock sank deep into it's large eye, straight through the pupil and beyond. It grabbed her by the throat as it screeched and came to its feet. This was it. It was applying pressure on her neck, she flailed and kicked and tried to scream for help as it raised her over its head. Over and over her foot came crashing down on his chest, but nothing worked.

The lights were fading now, and Sherry knew this was it.

Sherry's last conscious thoughts were on Jake. On how upset he would be to find out that she died. And how shocked the world would be when they found this beast. Certainly they would find it, after all, it was a monster! And just like that she saw darkness.

"Let her go!" Jake's furious growl ripped through the air and the creature, as if obeying, dropped her limp girl to the floor. She went crashing to the ground so loudly that Jake heard it from where he was.

But when she did not cry out Jake's body went cold. Why wasn't she moving?

She couldn't be dead... there was just no way.. but she wasn't breathing. He could see that she wasn't breathing. Her eyes were half shut and even worse, her throat looked purple and bruised.

"You motherfucker!" He roared and went charging at the beast.

It flexed its claws and the bloody eye twitched in its socket.

Jake pounced into the air and roared furiously as he prepared his fist to come crashing down onto the beast, but the thing raised his hand and smacked Jake away and into another tombstone.

Albert Wesker came charging then. He was black lightning as he smashed his foot into the belly of what used to be his friend. A growl ripped through the beast as it skidded back a bit, hitting Sherry with its foot in the process.

"You really did it, William," Wesker observed neutrally in the rain, pressing his hair back and adjusting his glasses as his son stood from where he had fallen, "you took the virus. You fool. You should be grateful that your daughter cannot hear me speak these words. She would defend you quite avidly. Little does she know that you were nothing more than a power-hungry madman. Or that you killed your wife just to get closer to understanding how it is that the virus worked. I wonder how your daughter would feel to know that her father is truly at fault for everything in her life… that he wanted power more than he wanted her or her mother. You wanted to be as I am, isn't that right?"

The creature growled and came charging again. Albert Wesker waited patiently but then to his own shock the beast was knocked sideways.

Jake Muller's eyes were glowing red in the darkness. His fist rose and fell with a rage that stupefied his father and crippled the beast. Jake brought his hand down over and over into the face of William Birkin and when the creature made an attempt to hit him he stepped on the human hand and continued to beat his face.

Albert Wesker flashed over to his side and stepped on the collar bone of the creature, then with a small twitch of his thigh the sound of bones cracking resonated through the air. He had fracture the bones there.

The beast wailed and screeched loudly as blood surged up from its mouth and spilled out into the air, flowing down the sides of his mouth and down to the soil.

"Kill him!" Jake roared at his father.

The man already had his gun out and pressed the barrel of it down to the creature who struggled so furiously beneath him and his son. Together they were a force to be reckoned with, and it was the only thing that kept Wesker from losing control of himself. This thing posed no threat to them both, only alone might it have been able to cause some damage.

Jake turned his face away as his father pulled the trigger five times. The sound exploded in his ears and made his head ring.

The beast went still beneath him. It seemed to be unable to do anything except release a hard moan and die. The eyeball still twitched, and Albert Wesker embedded three bullets into the one too.

Jake fell away from it with a hoarse cry and crawled to the limp blonde near the grave stone as his father called Umbrella snappily. As he crawled to her he felt that his heart was going to burst in his chest. His chest hurt.

"Sherry? Oh god, baby, wake up," he pleaded gently and lay her out flat. Her throat was black and blue, her lips had lost their pinkness. Quickly he placed his hand on her chest, feeling for a heartbeat, when he felt nothing his stomach dropped.

"Fuck! Fuck! No, no, no!" Jake frantically tilted her head back and pinched her nostrils closed, breathing air into her lungs. He began to frantically try to bring her back to life. His father snapped the phone closed and shot another round off into the beasts head. Then he sped over to where his son was struggling to bring Sherry back.

She was completely still, her body felt cold, her eyes were half lidded and there was no expression on her face. Her head wasn't lolling around like in the movies, it was stiffly positioned, her eyes were bored looking almost, and her lips were slack, her jaw stiff.

"Help her!" Jake yelled at his father, resisting the urge to sob. This couldn't be it, she was his, there was something about her that made her special. How could it be that this was all there was? "HELP HER!" He demanded again as his father reached into his pocket and pulled out a strange capsule.

"Move," he ordered and Jake complied, shaking horribly hard and watching his father uncap the glass vial and drop a syringe into his hand.

"What is that? What is that that you-

"It will hopefully jolt her back if her blood is right." His father explained calmly, then sunk the syringe into her swollen throat. Jake shut his eyes at the sight and burrowed his face into his hands.

Albert plunged the fluid into Sherry's system and then capped the end of the syringe again. Carefully he massaged the spot he had injected it into and watched her carefully for any response.

"Please Sherry?" Jake whispered inaudibly, "wake up…"

A few moments of silence passed. Nothing but the rain sounded through the air. The dread sank in hard and cold. His eyes burned with tears and for a long time all he could do was think about how awful his life would be now. How confusing and how angering.

"No, wake the fuck up!" Jake grabbed Sherry's body in his hands and shoved his father away, "wake up!" As he shook her Sherry began to breathe hard through her nose, and Jake kept yelling. "Don't you fucking dare! Get up!" Sherry's eyes fluttered slightly as adrenaline pumped her system. A gasp tore through her as oxygen flooded her starved lungs. "you – you have to live," he whispered as Sherry trembled in his arms and looked around wildly with confusion. He could see it written all over her face. She had no idea of what was going on, and could hardly speak, but she was trying to, "it's me! Sherry it's me you're okay, you're okay."

Her eyes cast their way up to him and for a long moment all she could do was stare at him, completely shocked. And then Albert Wesker was there, checking her pupils, her pulse, the wound in her arm.

"J-Jake there was a-a-

"I know baby, I know," he assured her gently, aware of the fact that his father's workers were approaching from the gate. He hadn't even noticed them, or the fact that Wesker was angrily speaking to one of them, he kept catching the word 'contamination.'

"Oh baby, I'm so sorry that you're hurt, I know it hurts," Jake promised, noticing the constant flow of tears, "I'm so sorry."

"Jake he was a monster—he-"

"I know, I know."

"Jake he…"

"Put her under," his father ordered one of the paramedics from Umbrella, Jake did not argue as Sherry watched him, mumbling incoherently with wide eyes and terror on her face.

"Stay with me," she pleaded him, her hand in his, "you can't leave."

"I won't baby, I won't ever leave you."

"Jake… you have to… you have to explain everything…"

"I will baby, my father will tell you everything… when you get up."

…

What Jake had witnessed didn't sink in until early the next morning. He had hardly slept. His father kept checking in on Sherry's blood and though Jake could not understand what he was saying he had a feeling the prognosis was good.

It was when his father came in for the tenth time since the night before that Jake opened his mouth.

"She's going to make it right?"

"We do not know that yet. However, I do not see why she would not."

Jake nodded, swallowing, "w-what was that thing… yesterday?"

"That was William Birkin."

"Oh stop that shit," Jake hissed, "you know what I mean. What the fuck was that! And why did you act like it wasn't a fucking monster. You acted like you've seen that type of shit before."

"I have seen that type of creature before," Albert admitted easily, adjusting his glasses and staring down at his son impassively, "you and I are tyrants as well Jake. I have only tamed that part of your blood for your own good, but is it a wonder to you that you often find yourself reacting aggressively, or demonstrating more strength then you should? You and I are as he, except, our blood accepts the virus, and his rejects it."

Jake's eyes widened to the size of plates after that, and he demanded further explanation.

Wesker admitted to having complete control over the virus in Jake's veins, explaining that he simply administers small doses every so often to his son so keep it under control. Jake was furious to learn that those monthly health shots were in fact created by his father to keep the virus subsided.

His father then explained that there would be times when it would show through, such as the night before when his eyes flared in color and it seemed he had more strength then he had ever possessed. "Had I not given you those injections you might have been able to kill William Birkin, but you were weakened significantly."

"And what was that shit you were saying… that William killed Sherry's mom?"

Wesker gave him a simple nod, "yes."

Jake heard the entire story and by the end of it he felt as though he was going to explode. He couldn't bear anymore. After all, how was he going to tell Sherry?

Jake waited and waited for Sherry to wake up. The swelling at her neck had not gone down at all, but she seemed to be getting some of her color tone back, and still, it was not a sure sign that she woke actually wake up.

Jake kept replaying the scene of Sherry over and over in his head, how limp she was, and that beast…

That thing!

Sometime in the morning Jake got up and went to get a cup of coffee. He hadn't slept, and really didn't want to.

For a long while Jake sat there, just watching Sherry.

"You have to wake up," he pleaded gently, "I can't do this without you.. any of this. Me, I can't be who I am now if you're not here," he bowed his head to her hand carefully and kissed her cool knuckles… "I love you baby."

Silence reigned for a long moment. He sighed softly and picked his head up, staring at Sherry's soft face.

**…**

That night Jake was talking to Sheva and Chris on the phone, lying and explaining that Sherry simply wanted to be left alone and that she was not in the mood to see others at the moment. His father explained to him that it was dire that he not tell what he saw. Jake complied, knowing no one would believe him anyway. The image of that creature still terrified him.

"Yeah, she's okay, she just wants quiet and peace."

"Okay," Chris sighed, "well, I'll see you at school tomorrow or whatever."

"Yeah, I'll be there," Jake lied and said goodbye, turning around and going to Sherry's side.

That night something different happened. Sherry's hand, which rested in his, suddenly twitched.

Jake stood sharply and stared down at her, taking her face in his hand, "Sherry?"

A soft moan moved through her and a hard breath escaped him. Her eyelids flickered for a long time. Then her eyes sprang open and she stared at the ceiling absently.

"Sherry?" he stood and hovered his face over hers, trying to desperately look at her better.

Immediately she recognized him, and the flood of memories made her tremble. The beast, that thing that was her father. That thing that was not at all a dream but in fact very real.

"Jake…" she whispered softly, and then turned her face to look at him.

"Yes, Sherry," he grinned and ignored the tears in his eyes at her face. She wasn't smiling though, she was horribly serious.

"It was real… wasn't it?"

Jake gave her a firm nod and then hugged her, burying his face into her throat gently, "yes… it was, and I'm so sorry about that fact…"

Sherry nodded softly, and then held him tightly… trying to block out the images of that thing in her mind. It brought tears to her eyes. She wanted to know everything, she didn't know how Jake had found her, and so she asked.

"I heard you scream…. My dad guessed that you would be in the graveyard… when we went inside we couldn't see you but your scream alerted us… and then I found you with that thing… his arms were around your neck Sherry… I just lost it, I don't even remember what I did."

"You blacked out," she clarified gently, looking at his eyes.

"Yes… there's so much to –

Suddenly, Albert Wesker slammed the door open and then slammed it closed. Jake jumped and stared at his father with confusion as the man grabbed the clipboard at the end of Sherry's desk and furiously scribbled things down, completely ignoring the fact that she was awake.

"Dad…?"

"What." He answered snappily, making Sherry wince although it wasn't directed towards her. The man had a white lab coat on.

"Sherry's awake-

"Well that is very god, isn't it?" Albert replied and walked around to the side of the bed, examining her face carefully, "do you remember what happened, girl?"

"Y-yes sir," she whispered, lowering her head.

"Good." He took a small breath and then clenched his hands behind his back. "Now… there are many things to explain to you. I am certain you are curious as to what happened at the graveyard."

"Yes…" she nodded, sitting up slightly and then biting her lip, "and you have answers?"

"Yes, I know what happened-

"SIR!" A man came running into the room wildly. Instantly Jake was on edge at the man's face. His eyes were wide and his lips were trembling.

"What?"

"T-there's an emergency… it cannot wait-

"Tell me then—

"No-no it is extremely sensitive."

"I am ordering you to explain yourself at this instant," Albert Wesker hissed with impatience.

The man adjusted his glasses on his face and cast a wary look towards Sherry, who was clutching Jake' hand tightly. Then he raised his gaze to Albert Wesker who looked murderous.

"Sir," he started, swallowing hard, "there has been an outbreak."

**THE END. **

* * *

**..Did I just go there? Yes... yes I did. haha! I hope you guys really liked it, I know this one is really long but I didn't want to divide it. So.. There you go!**

**I want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart and the top XD. You are all awesome and I could not have finished this without your support. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU :) **

**On the other hand, about the next story - I still have no decided exactly on whether it's going to be Jake/Sherry or Dante/Kat. But remember how I hinted at a short little Chris/Sheva? Like ten chapters maybe? Well I think I'm going to be doing that and then post it before moving on to my choice. So I really really hope you guys read it! :) **

**About a sequel.. I don't know. I mean if it were to be written I know exactly how it would go in my head. So... maybe I'll try it but chances are it's not going to happen. I know that there are a lot of questions left, which is why I am using the Chris/Sheva story to get a few questions knocked out about them in the context of this story. **

**Oh well. We'll see how many of you read that little short ficlet! **

**THANK YOU AGAIN. AND PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU THOUGHT :)**

**Take The World is a song by She Wants Revenge, give it a listen :) **


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